


A Tiring Endeavour

by AbhorrentGodliness, Gaqalesqua



Series: Collabs [12]
Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 4
Genre: All the spells have been liberally stolen from D&D, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Attempted Murder, Beauty and the Beast Elements, Blow Jobs, Breast Fucking, Breeding, Chases, Consensual Non-Consent, Cunnilingus, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat, Do you ever love a character so much you fill the tag with self indulgent alternate universes, Dom/sub, Dubious Consent, Dubious Consent Due To Identity Issues, Enemies to Lovers, Extremely Dubious Consent, F/M, Facials, Femsub, First Time Blow Jobs, Groping, Happy Ending, Hey kids! turns out the fun doesn't stop after you break a curse!, If you're cursed to be evil I think that counts as an identity issue, Kidnapping, Knotting, Local Ex Murderer Needs Therapy, Loss of Virginity, Maledom, Maledom/Femsub, Manhandling, Masturbation, Mildly Dubious Consent, Non-Consensual Groping, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Orgasm Denial, Overstimulation, Scratching, Sexual Assault, Size Difference, Strength Kink, Suicidal Thoughts, Trust me guys we're going full villain, Werewolf Sex, villain AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-07
Updated: 2020-10-03
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:20:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 9
Words: 31,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25774240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AbhorrentGodliness/pseuds/AbhorrentGodliness, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gaqalesqua/pseuds/Gaqalesqua
Summary: Four years ago, the young son of a lord was cursed by a dying witch to be incapable of goodness - love, empathy, kindness.Now a princess has come to kill him.
Relationships: Arthur Maxson/Female Sole Survivor, Arthur Maxson/Sole Survivor
Series: Collabs [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/883005
Comments: 94
Kudos: 134





	1. Chapter 1

A week’s worth of scandalous rumours preceded the Maxsons’ arrival at court. 

Nora wasn't sure which to believe. They were all equally ridiculous. Some said they came to ask for an army to take back their old home. Others said they were here to search for ancient magics to help break a curse. The meaner rumours circled around their apparent fall from stature, that they just needed money and came because Lord Maxson was a good friend of the King. 

What Nora did know was that she was fascinated by the two people she had never met before they even arrived, and the day they finally attended court, they immediately met with the king and queen in the library without a formal welcome. 

Nora managed to sneak in via the upper gallery, and she hid between the bookshelves above the four, quietly listening for them. All she knew of the Maxsons was that they had fallen from renown four years ago, and now they lived in a modest house with one servant who cooked for them. Lady Maxson made their clothes, they tended their own vegetables and herbs, and their money was regularly donated to the needy. So unlike every other peacocking titled noble in the court, they were useful. 

The door swung open, and Nora, peering over the balcony, got her first look at the mysterious couple. Lord Jonathan was tall and dark haired with a neat beard and piercing blue eyes. His clothing was in fashion but not extravagant, and he was tanned, unlike so many other noblemen. Lady Jessica was fairer haired, her eyes slightly darker blue, but like her husband she was sun kissed and looked worn. There was a tiredness around their eyes, and Nora leaned in closer to get a better look at them. 

"Your majesties," Jonathan greeted. "Thank you for agreeing to see us."

"Of course." The king gestured for them to take a seat. "It's been far too long since we saw you, Jonathan. We haven't spoken in four years."

The lord swallowed. "I...apologise for the silence. But...we were dealt a horrific blow shortly after the Campaigns, and...it's been difficult to move on from it."

The king nodded. "We...had noticed the absence. My condolences. It must have pained you to lose someone so precious at such a young age."

Jessica let out a tiny sob, and raised her hand to her face. She didn't cry in a dignified way. Nora's brows raised as the woman's face crumpled and she leaned into her husband for comfort. He gave it willingly, arms tightly around her. 

"The loss...isn't a loss of life, as such," Jonathan said softly. "It's far worse."

King Theodore's brow furrowed. "What do you mean, _far worse?”_

The queen reached out, brushing a hand against Jessica's arm. "Tell us. If not a death…"

"Do you remember the hunts?" Jonathan asked. "When we found out which coven was abducting those children? And I tracked down one of the last ones?" 

"You had to kill her lover first," Theodore recalled.

Jonathan nodded, swallowing. "She...cursed us with her dying breath. Told us that our own blood would become incapable of love." 

"Your own...your son?" Theodore realised. 

The lord looked down. "Yes."

Stepping forward, Theodore clasped his hands over the Maxsons' shoulders, as Queen Maya touched his back gently. 

"Go on," she invited. "Tell us everything." 

Jessica's sobs were muffled as Jonathan continued. "We returned home the day before Arthur's 16th," he began. "And our son was fine. A good boy. Almost a man. Happy, smiling. Then on his birthday…"

The noblewoman's sobs became louder. 

"The hour he turned 16 was a full moon, and he- he- _turned,_ Theo. From love to evil in moments. The- the things he did to the guests before we managed to escape…"

Chairs were dragged over, and all four of them sat down. Jessica was inconsolable, shaking in Jonathan's arms as he stroked her fair hair. 

"Turned?" Theodore asked softly. "Turned how?"

"Into a monster," Jonathan whispered. "Huge claws, sharp fangs, burning golden eyes. He- tore into everyone. Ran about the estate...killing anyone who was in his path. We barely made it out ourselves."

"Oh, Jonathan, Jessica," Maya gasped. "I'm so sorry. Four years? Truly?"

"We visited as often as we could." His face was blank. "But eventually it hurt too much. He was so _cruel._ So happily callous. That wasn't our son.”

Maya looked at Theodore, who leaned forward. "What do you need from us?" he asked. 

"We need," the lord swallowed, "we need an army, Theo. We need your help to- to- to kill…"

"Our son," Jessica whispered. "We need you to help us kill our son."

Nora's eyes widened. _Kill him?_ Why would they need _help_ killing him? Just how dangerous could one man be? Nora had fought before. She'd fought cursed creatures too. Maybe she could help? 

Except they would never let her. Screwing up her nose, Nora sat back and listened to them for a little longer. 

"We will need men," Jonathan said. "And horses. And possibly a mage or two if they can be spared. We can't take the risk of not having one." 

Huh. _Nora_ was a mage. Nora was a gifted mage. Her own elven tutors had said she had a gift for magic that they hadn't seen. It was entirely possible they were spinning bullshit to ingratiate themselves to the royal family but elves weren't really known for their flattery of humans. Which meant that Nora was capable of killing this _Arthur,_ right? The nobles didn't tend to have the physical power needed to fight, especially a cursed man...

Nora sat back and began to think about what she would need to take with her. 

* * *

The old Maxson estate was a few miles out of town, bordering the edge of a deep forest. According to the history books she had _borrowed_ from the library, the Maxson family had settled there just over 200 years ago after escaping the war of a nearby country. The land had been unclaimed, and when the queen at the time had permitted them to settle it, they quickly proved their worth as warriors, custodians and friends of the crown. 

Then came the hunts. 

After dark covens moved into the forest, Jonathan Maxson had led the charge to eradicate them, rescuing as many of the children that the witches had kidnapped as he could. And in the process, he had killed the highest sister of the Enclave, but after that he returned home to find a monster in his household, killing everyone and everything in sight, including young Arthur, the only son and heir, leaving Jessica and Jonathan childless, fleeing their home. 

Or that was how the book had ended, anyway. Now Nora knew the truth. The monster had been Arthur Maxson himself, and clearly the Maxsons had given up on saving him. She found herself pitying him, and his parents. They must have spent years fighting for him. She couldn't have pictured anything less than a small army of researchers looking up a way to break the curse. The way they had cried…

The estate loomed up ahead, dark and empty. It was clearly the remains of a formerly beautiful home, but the years hadn't been kind to it. And likely neither had Arthur. But the gates were tightly shut as she approached, heavy wrought iron reaching up above her. The dirt road became gravel, and she cursed. She wasn't going to be able to sneak in if she had to crunch her way up the long driveway. And with the overgrown bushes that lined the way, she would be completely at the mercy of whatever came at her. Which would likely be a monstrous man. 

Nora opened her bag of components, and pulled out a feather. She whispered the incantation, lifting into the air. It was starting to get dark, but as her eyes scanned the sprawling wilderness of untamed garden, she spotted something moving around. 

That looked human enough. 

Nora waved her hands, and summoned a fire bolt, hurling it towards the figure. 

Hunger was the main thing he felt at the moment, but the need to protect his home was just as strong. Arthur prowled the estate grounds, following any tracks or scents he could find, whether they be human or animal, but found little to nothing of interest. 

At least until his immediate surroundings suddenly started lighting up. 

It was almost instinct that he darted out of the way as a fire bolt collided with the ground where he’d once stood, flames engulfing the dead grass, and Maxson turned his eyes up to where it came from, baring his teeth before turning and fleeing toward his home. Whatever or whoever had sent fire at him from above clearly had the intention to harm him, but he had no leverage from such a distance. 

Nora cursed as the man fled, and didn't hesitate to give chase. That was fine. But she would have to be careful with her spells the closer they got to the estate. And there was a big, expansive balcony with broken windows and crumpled doors up ahead, which she hoped wouldn't lead her into anywhere cramped or too close quarters. 

Barging through the front doors, Arthur made it inside, not bothering to shut them behind himself; if the intruder wished to fight, they could follow and meet him on even grounds where he’d have a chance. 

He waited a few moments for them to trail after him, but when they never did, he started to think they’d given up and left—until a different smell hit his nose. It wasn’t familiar, and it was _close._

A low growl rumbled from his chest as he left the main hall and quickly traversed his estate, following the scent to where it was strongest. 

Nora gently floated through the doors, quietly whispering and motioning to cast invisibility on herself as she slipped into the house. It was...dark. And dismal. The space in front of her opened up in an expansive hallway, with stairs on the level below leading up to more stairs that split either side of it, heading into different sections of the house. This must've been the entryway, and she glanced around, looking for her prey. 

The scent was _strong,_ and as he ascended the stairs, he could smell them as if they were only a few feet away. Stopping, Maxson tipped his chin up and took a deep inhale through his nose before turning his head to look where he knew it was strongest, slowly approaching. 

“I _smell_ you,” he growled. “You can’t hide forever.”

Swallowing, Nora moved away from him. _Shit._ His voice- she hadn't expected that from him. And the sense of smell…

He grew closer, stepping more into the light and giving the intruder a better look at him—a beast that stood on hind legs, much taller than any human, with the features of a wolf; dark brown fur covered his body except in the spots where scars prevented it. 

“Come out,” he drawled, growing closer to them—no, _her_ —as he kept slowly following the scent, his eyes flicking around trying to see where she was, though he still found nothing. “You think you’re brave enough to fight me, girlie? Let me see you.”

The spell was about to wear off, and even as he said that, she flickered back into view, already pulling out a chunk of silver to cast lightning. It crackled in her hand and she threw it at the beast. 

His eyes slowly dragged up and down her body right when she came into view. “Ah, there you—“ Before he was even able to finish his sentence, he was struck in the shoulder, sending him back a few steps with a snarl of pain. His hand went to the injured area only briefly before he was charging her. 

“Just give up now, little girl. You’ll only make it worse for yourself when you lose.”

Nora darted out of the way, still airborne, and not keen on finding out just what he could do to her. He was talking shit. She was fine. She had plenty of spells left, and already she reached into her pouch, pulling out a few little pieces of gravel. Crunching them in her fist, she threw them at him. They turned into missiles of purple light, headed straight for him.

Lowering to all fours, Maxson jumped to the side, dodging the missiles, but then immediately leapt right at her. She zipped backwards with a cry, barely avoiding him. How long did she have left before the flight spell faded? Five minutes? Maybe a little longer?

He landed on the ground just in front of her, his eyes raising to lock with her own just as he stood on his hind legs again. “What’s wrong? Don’t want to play fair? Afraid you’ll lose? Why don’t you fight me like all the others did, hm? With swords.”

"I'm not an idiot," Nora retorted, reaching into her bag once more. She weighed up what she had. Once the flight spell faded, she would need to keep her attacks to ensure he stayed away from her. But for now...she fished out more of the gravel, holding it in her hand. 

“You’re an idiot for coming here, especially on your own,” he corrected, baring his teeth. “Let me guess—your husband forbid you from joining him to slay the beast so you decided to do it yourself?”

"The fact that you think anyone can tell me what to do is more of an insult than anything you'd already said," Nora snapped, and whipped her wrist forward, the gravel turning to purple missiles once more that flew straight for him. 

Arthur jumped away, but one of the missiles just barely hit his side. He snarled again, his hand going to the fresh wound. “Then you’re unmarried,” he commented, glancing her up and down. “A virgin?”

Her face burned. "What would it matter? Maybe my husband just doesn't order me around."

A loud laugh escaped him, nearly echoing in the room. “So you _are_ a virgin. Mm, we can change that,” he purred, glancing her over again. “Just come down and I’ll take care of you.”

_Shit._ Nora could feel the spell starting to fade. She had sixty seconds. Pulling a sugar cube from her bag, she flung it at him, whispering the words that would slow him down. And then she took off, flying as fast as she could, deeper into the building, away from him.

The item itself caught him off guard, and he just stared as it flew through the air at him, not even turning into anything like the others had, eventually bumping into his chest—which was when everything changed. As he watched her fly off, Maxson went to chase after her, but his movements were _slow,_ and it felt like he was going nowhere. 

“You can’t keep running from me, little girl,” he called after her while still trying to chase. “I _will_ catch you, and when I do, I’ll fucking kill you.”

She barely heard him as she flew down the hallway, looking for somewhere to use to defend herself. Somewhere easy to retreat from, with a doorway…

She kept searching.

It wasn’t long that he was slowed down, maybe only a minute, but as soon as he was back to his normal movements, Arthur was following her scent once again. She was easy to track, having a fairly strong and distinct smell—not that there were really any others in his home besides his own, anyway—so it wasn’t hard to follow her.

Nora didn't quite know where she ended up - all she knew was that she was on the ground, and there was a door behind her. The flight spell was gone, and she left the door in front of her open, ready, waiting. 

Her scent led him to the room, and he stepped into the doorway, his eyes zeroing in on her almost immediately. “There you are,” he growled. “Why do you try to hide when you know your end is inevitable?” 

Nora threw the spider web, and it filled the single doorway, five feet high, not enough space at either the top or the bottom for him to squeeze through. Then she was off again, running through the door behind her into a set of halls that she didn't know where she would end up. 

This was getting annoying. As much as he loved the hunt, this woman was just frustrating him to no end. He made an irritated grunt, pulling one arm to try to free it, then the other, but nothing worked and he remained stuck in the sticky substance. Really, he was surprised she didn’t take advantage of the fact he was stuck, instead choosing to run, but she must have realized she was growing tired after all the spells she’d used thus far.

He wasn’t sure why, but the web eventually retracted, freeing him from its hold, though he still felt its stickiness in his fur despite how it likely wasn’t even there. With a heavy, dramatic sigh, he, once again, chased after her, following his intruder’s scent once more.

Nora felt the mana drain from her as the web spell faded, and she kept running. She needed to get out of here. But wherever she was, she seemed to be at the back of the estate, and as she passed more doors, she had no idea which way would lead her to the front again. 

It was clear she didn’t know where she was going—she’d never been to the estate before, after all—so it was easy to catch up to her. He was silent in his movements, prowling and stalking, walking on all fours as soon as he spotted her, and once he deemed himself close enough, he leapt to pounce on her from behind. 

The brief _click_ of claws on the stone floor was all the warning that Nora got before she was pinned down by a heavy bulk, the breath gone from her lungs. She would have cried out, but she couldn't. 

“Poor thing,” he crooned in her ear, leaning down so their faces were close. “Caught by the big bad monster you intended to kill. What will you do now, hm? Fight back? Negotiate? _Surrender?”_

Panting, Nora took a few deep breaths, her hands pinned up by her face. She had to calm down, she had to- and she was _trying._

“You know, I was planning to kill you for your foolishness. _But,”_ he tipped his chin down, looking over what he could see of her from behind, “I think I might keep you, instead.”

Nora turned her head, looking at him. "Keep?" she repeated, scratching at her jaw.

“Mm. Keep,” he confirmed. “For myself.”

She splayed the back of her hand against the floor. "And what if I say no?"

“What makes you think I care?”

Nora whispered the ancient word for _thunder_ and snapped her fingers. 

A wave of pure force blasted out from her body, smashing into him, _through_ him, tossing him into the air like a twig and breaking through the floorboards above him. Nora scrambled to her feet, and tore off towards wherever it was she would reach next. 

It might have been a few seconds or a few minutes or even a few hours before Arthur’s eyes were cracking open, his body on a completely different floor of the estate than when he’d last been awake. Slowly and cautiously, he pushed himself to sit up, groaning just slightly, one hand moving to his head. What the—

_That bitch._

A low growl escaped his chest. It must have only been a few minutes, surely, since she’d used magic to send him flying from atop her and through the floorboards above, but if he’d found it annoying before, he _definitely_ found it even more enraging now. 

Getting himself to his feet, it took a second for him to regain his balance, and he was soon following her scent once again. He wasn’t sure how much longer he had until sunrise, but if he had any intention of removing this threat from his home, he needed to do it soon.

It took her far too long to make her way back to the front of the estate, and as she came in from the other side, she realised she had done a full lap of the house. Fine, she didn't care, she was getting out of here. Rushing for the door, she was already thinking about her freedom. Gods, she was stupid. The door was still ajar from where Arthur had come in not long ago, and she fled out of it, the cool night air whisking at the sweat on her forehead.

He’d tracked her throughout the halls, eventually finding her closer to the front of the estate, which meant she’d likely find her way outside—but he couldn’t have that. Most people who stepped on his grounds died, only a few escaping, but she’d be the first to be _kept,_ and he wouldn’t allow her to slip through his grasp. 

The moment she stepped out of the building, Maxson leapt at her from the side, using the entirety of his weight to take her down. 

No no _no not again!_ She already had the iron in her hand, but her hand was free, and she barked out the single word, waving her fingers. There was a sensation of exhaustion that started to throb in her bones as more of her mana was sapped away. She couldn’t keep this up for much longer and she knew it. 

The iron glowed white-hot in her hand and flew from her grip, then clung to Arthur, expanding, wrapping around him like iron shackles as she tried her best to wriggle out from underneath his bulk. 

A clawed hand went to her chest, holding her down, though he stared at himself in confusion when _shackles_ appeared. “What is—“ he growled, turning his free hand over without moving the other to look at one of the shackles on his wrists, then looking down at what wrapped around his chest. _“What is this!?”_ he snarled. “I am tired of your games!”

Nora was up and away, reaching into her bag for another component. She still had more spells, plenty more, but Arthur was _not_ going down easily and now she just wanted to _escape._ No more fighting. 

Tossing the seed shells his way, she cast her last powerful spell, almost staggering as more of her magic reserves were sapped away. 

She was out from under him and he almost gave chase, but as soon as his eyes flicked up to look after her, there wasn’t just _one_ of her, but _many._ He blinked a few times, looking between the countless women who all looked alike, and shook his head in frustration. “Foolish girl,” he snarled. “You can only play your dirty tricks for so long. But when I catch you, I will not be gentle.”

Quickly, he leapt at one of the women, pouncing on her, but she disappeared—so he just kept doing the same to each one. 

Pulling a piece of cured leather out of her pouch, Nora cast her armour. It appeared around her, glowing a vibrant blue, looking for all the world to see like a full suit of ceremonial plate. It didn’t matter that it lit her up like a beacon and would give away her position to the man who was chasing her. The gate was close - it had to be - but oh god, this garden was _so_ much bigger now that she wasn’t flying over it. 

_Glowing._ The difference became clear as the real woman stood out amongst the others, whatever it was around her now making her a clear target. She wasn’t too far, so when he bolted after her, it didn’t take long to catch up, and he tackled her from behind once again. 

Nora went down like a sack of potatoes. Arthur was _heavy._ This was the third time he’d gotten her, and this time she didn’t have anything to hold him. The armour was still _glowing,_ protecting her from the worst of the damage, but pinned underneath him like this, she couldn’t reach her bag, and he’d learned - her hands were pinned beneath her. Panting, her head rested in the dirt. 

“Give me _this.”_ Snatching the bag, Arthur chucked it away from them both, the thing disappearing far off elsewhere on the grounds of the estate. “Foolish girl, coming here on your own,” he chided. “I should raze your town for this.”

“NO!” she yelled, more at the loss of her bag than what he’d said about _razing her town._ Even a cursed man would’ve found it difficult to take on the entire army of the capital city, wizards and all. And for all the research she’d done, there was no mention of a monster leaving the estate to terrorize any of the towns that were nearby. So...maybe he didn’t _want_ to leave…?

Humming, he leaned down, pressing a cold nose against the side of her face and inhaling. “Who are you? What gives you the gall to come here and fight me?”

“You’ll die anyway,” Nora panted, winded. 

“Then grant me the information as a mercy,” he replied, though he clearly didn’t believe her. 

“Fuck you.”

A toothy grin stretched across his maw. “You will, don’t worry.” Pulling her shoulders back, Arthur then shoved her forward so her head slammed against the ground to knock her out.


	2. Chapter 2

Nora’s head was  _ killing _ her. 

Her hands caught as she tried to reach out for the enchanted glass of cool water that she always kept at the side of her bed, and as the throbbing intensified, she realised she was  _ cold. _ And a little  _ damp. _ And  _ fuck, _ her whole body was aching too. 

Wait.

Shit.

Her eyes flew open, and darted around. Wherever she was, it was dark, except for a single torch outside out-

Those were very clearly bars in front of her. 

_ Fuck.  _ So it hadn’t been a nightmare, or a training exercise - the most gruelling training exercise of her life. She was still in the Maxson estate, she assumed, the prisoner of its only resident, a man who she had tried to kill. 

“Oh, good, you’re awake.” The voice came from the corner near the cell door, though the area was covered in shadows and engulfed him as he sat there, watching her, an apple in one hand and a knife in the other while he cut off slices and ate them. “I was wondering when you’d finally come to.”

The chains rattled as Nora started, trying to get away from the dark outline watching her. She could see his eyes, bright yellow and glowing in the darkness, and cold fear suffused her, breath catching. 

Arthur inhaled deeply, his eyes closing for a second before he returned his gaze to her. “You’re good with magic. Not many survive as long as you do.”

“Am I supposed to take that as a compliment?” she muttered, wincing. If only she had her things...she could use a healing potion right now. 

“Yes, actually.” There was some soft crunching as he chewed on a piece of apple. “You still failed, however, but your skill is why you are  _ here _ and not still in the gardens.”

Her brow furrowed. _ “Here _ as in, chained up in the dungeon? Or  _ here _ as in alive?”

Rather than answering, he quietly hummed, chewing again. “I have an offer for you, and I suggest you do not take it lightly.” He paused, thinking for a moment. “You came here because you know of me— _about_ me. I do not blame you, and you certainly aren’t the first to show up to my estate to kill the monster. But in exchange for your life, I want you to break this curse. Use your magic or what you must to do so.”

“You seem to enjoy killing anyone who shows up,” Nora pointed out. “Why should I believe that you want the curse broken?”

“Why would I ask you to break the curse if I did not want it broken?” he countered. “I have little control except just after dawn and just before dusk, and even then, it is… minute. It is a  _ curse _ for a reason.”

Nora paused. This was  _ very  _ suspect, and her eyes narrowed. “And what if I  _ can’t _ break it? Your parents must have spent literal years trying with the best their money could buy.”

Silence took over him for a long few moments. It was a question he’d often thought about—when he could, at least. If there was no way to break the curse, then he’d be stuck forever.

“I suggest you try,” he finally answered, looking back up at her. “Failure is unacceptable.”

“I don’t have much of a choice,” she muttered. “What will you do if I say no, anyway?”

“I told you this was in exchange for your life,” he reminded her. “Refusing to try puts you in the garden, where you would have been left last night.”

Exhaling heavily, Nora winced at the pain that was still throbbing through her. “Fine,” she muttered. “I’ll try and break your curse. But you’re going to need to agree to some terms first before I do  _ anything _ for you, got it?”

“Negotiations? Mm. Go on,” he replied. 

“Not here,” she said. “I need a knife, a bowl, a paintbrush, some ink and some paper.”

His eyes narrowed. “I sign no contracts, witch. This is merely a verbal agreement, and I keep my word.”

“I don’t trust you,” she said. “And I don’t trust that you won’t do as you please with me whilst I’m trying to break the curse. Why else would you want to  _ keep _ me if not-” She broke off. “You know what I’m getting at. It isn’t a contract. I’m just doing some protective runes.”

Slowly, Maxson stood and moved over to her, crouching down in front of her so they were eye-level, half his face illuminated by the torch light from outside her cell. He studied her for a long second before finally speaking. “Who are you?”

“Well, I’m not a witch,” she replied. “I’m a wizard, and my head hurts.”

“Name?” he asked plainly. 

“Nora,” she replied. 

“Nora  _ what?” _

“Just  _ Nora,” _ she retorted. Even a man locked away by a curse for four years would’ve recognised the royal surname. 

“Where are you from,  _ Just Nora?” _

“The capital,” she told him. 

“I don’t like secrets,” he growled. “You’re hiding something. I’ll sign this contract if you tell me who you are.”

She rolled her eyes.  _ “Fine.  _ My name is Roshanara Kulkarni.”

Arthur’s eyes lit up. “Well, well, well. So, you’re telling me I have a  _ princess  _ locked in my dungeon?”

“Yes,” she snapped. “Now are you going to let me go to start working?”

Grinning wide, he glanced her up and down before popping the last piece of apple into his mouth, tossing the core onto the ground. “I am a man of my word,  _ princess,” _ he replied, then grabbed the key from his coat pocket and undid her chains before standing, making his way out of the cell—the door wasn’t locked. “Come.”

She staggered to her feet, leaning against the wall for a few moments to catch her breath. She wouldn’t complain about the pain or the bruises - she’d gotten in a few hits of her own - and instead stumbled forward, one hand reaching out to grab the bars for support. 

Arthur snatched the torch from the wall and started down the hallway, not bothering to look back. “Do not fall behind, princess. I will not come looking for you if you get lost, and the doors are all locked, so there is no escape.”

If she’d had any candle tallow, she’d have conjured some lights, but he had taken her bag, and so she did her best to keep up with him. 

He led her through a few rooms until finally stopping in a library that had shelves upon shelves of books, most requiring a ladder to reach, as well as a single, long table in the middle. In the back of the room, there was a large window that looked out over the gardens, and near that and off to the side was a wooden doorway that led to a smaller room. 

“You’ll work in here,” he told her while setting the torch in its handle. The room was dim from the single light and the sun that was still barely rising outside. “The door over there is the room where my family’s wizard once worked, but there isn’t much in there anymore. Still, you may find something salvageable. Otherwise, if you need anything else, tell me.”

Nodding, Nora immediately made for the door to the wizard’s old room. “What happened in there, anyway?”

He slowly followed, watching her carefully. Wizards and witches and all beings of magic were… tricky; he wouldn’t take any chances. “Accident.”

“Sure,” she muttered, pushing open the door. “Am I going to find a body in here?”

“Of course not. They were all eaten, I assure you,” he explained. 

The room itself was completely destroyed. Furniture was overturned, papers were strewn everywhere, glass was all over the floor, and it was just an utter mess that looked like it hadn’t been touched in years. Wrinkling her nose at the sight and his  _ humour, _ Nora looked it over, sighing heavily. None of her spell components were in reach, so she began hunting around, not caring if he was watching. If she could magnetise some metal, she would be able to fix what was in here, but it was going to take her a while. She did find a metal bowl and a small knife. It would have to do for now. 

Placing them down on the nearest stable surface, Nora held out her hand and pricked her finger, letting a little bit of blood escape her and fall into the bowl. The sting of the knife was nothing compared to the ache she was feeling right now, and she ignored it. 

“Your turn,” she said, holding out the bowl. 

Hesitant, he studied her for a long moment, but approached, using his own knife that he’d been cutting the apple with to barely slice his finger and let some blood drip into the bowl. “Do not make me regret this,” he warned. 

Rolling her eyes, Nora put the bowl down. There was a tiny brush that she found undamaged in the wreckage, and it was a little dusty, but she blew the dust off, and then flipped up her shirt, putting the end between her teeth as she dipped the brush into the blood and mixed it around, one hand pulling the waistband of her trousers down just enough to bare the skin around her womb. She painted three symbols on quickly, and there was a brief  _ sear _ of pain as they burned into her skin. 

Then the same symbols appeared on Arthur, on the trail of hair that led below his trousers.

Maxson leaned against the table as she worked, arms crossed over his chest, but it became clear he’d been  _ tricked _ when she was painting symbols on her lower stomach. “Wait, what are you—“

And then they were on his own, his skin burning as he hissed in pain, lifting his shirt up to see the symbols glow beneath his stomach hair before dying down into a scarred color. He pressed his fingers to them, but they no longer hurt, and an almost panicked look crossed his face as he glanced between her and his own body. “What did you  _ do _ to me!?” he snarled.

“There,” she said. “Now you can’t rape me or torture me without killing yourself. Damaging me will only cause that damage to yourself. And that’s a good idea, because if we need virgin’s blood, and you decided one night you wanted to take me, we would lose it.”

Rage took over as he charged her, grabbing her jaw and squeezing her cheeks while he forced her to walk backward until she was pressed against the wall. “I agreed to no such thing! You fucking  _ tricked _ me!”

“I told you I was going to draw some protective runes,” she retorted, words slightly slurred. Her jaw  _ ached, _ and the runes flared up on both of them, the  _ ache _ resonating against his mouth the way it did hers. “What did you  _ think _ I was going to protect myself against?!”

His hand pulled away from her face and he lifted his shirt again to see the symbols on his stomach glowing like before, more concerned about the pain there than on his jaw. “You said you wanted to  _ negotiate.” _

“And now I’m on even ground,” she told him. “Besides, even if you killed me, you wouldn’t last long. They’re raising an army to come and kill you. You need me.”

“I told you I had no desire to kill you so long as you worked on a way to break the curse,” he hissed, moving away from her while he ran his fingers over the symbols on his skin again. They were almost like scars embedded beneath his stomach hair, though they didn’t seem exactly the same. “But you’ve clearly shown I can’t trust you even with  _ minor  _ things.”

She rolled her eyes. “So you weren’t planning to kill me, but the rape and the torture?”

Arthur’s eyes flicked up to her as he lowered his shirt. “Get to work,” he snapped. “And don’t try anything else.”

Nora exhaled heavily as she began searching through the room, picking through the wreckage for something she could use. Hopefully, Arthur had killed the wizard before he could run and take his books with him. It was a horrible thing to wish for, but she was going to need an older mage’s help here, even if it was help from beyond the grave. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TW: sexual assault, groping

She found a pile of books and additional components buried in a chest that had been hidden in a dresser that Arthur hadn’t been interested in trashing, or hadn’t  _ gotten around _ to trashing, at any point. All of them were far more advanced than she was ready for, and…

None of them talked about  _ curses. _

Gods be damned. 

Still, she used the components, with a magnet to rub over little bits of metal that she used to mend a few things that she might need. There wasn’t really anything she could do about the dust except manually clean it herself. But even still, having her own wizard’s room, even if just for a little while…

The sun got higher, and Nora’s stomach rumbled loudly. Of course. She hadn’t eaten all day, since last night, in fact, and she sighed, heading out of the room. She doubted there would be anything in the kitchen for her to take, but maybe she could persuade Arthur to hunt something for her that they could share. 

Well, if she could  _ find  _ him. 

“Lord Maxson!” she ended up yelling, wandering the halls of the estate. Thanks to the symbols painted onto her belly, she was confident now. 

“Why are you yelling, princess?” he asked from behind her, silently prowling closer. She’d wandered past him not long ago while seemingly looking for something—him, he presumed—so he let her keep going while trailing after her. 

Nora jumped, and spun on her heel. “Food,” she said. “I don’t suppose you have any. I haven’t eaten since last night and it’s midday now.”

“Unfortunate. But why are you telling me this?” He slowly started circling her. 

“Well, you live here, and I assume you have a constant supply of food,” she pointed out, like she was explaining it to a child. “And if I starve to death, I can’t break your curse.”

“Mm, that  _ is _ true,” he agreed, stopping in front of her. “But it takes quite some time for humans to starve, so I think you’ll be alright for now. Unless…” Arthur glanced her over. 

Nora rolled her eyes. “I’ll die of thirst in four days, however, so perhaps you might be kind enough to let me at least have a drink of water,” she snapped. “Whatever you’re thinking, knock it off.”

A slow grin stretched across his face, upturning his left cheek more than his right due to the large scar that went from beneath his right eye and down into his beard. “There’s a well just outside the kitchen, so you won’t die from thirst.” He lifted his hand to gently take her chin between his thumb and forefinger. “But don’t worry, princess, I’ll feed you soon. Now, get back to work.”

Rolling her eyes again, Nora pulled away from him. “Where’s the kitchen, then?” she asked. 

“So needy,” he taunted before turning and walking away, heading toward the kitchen. Nora followed him without saying a word, her stomach still rumbling. 

They made it to the kitchen and then through a door that led to a small, closed-in area outside that used to have a small garden with fruits and vegetables but now only consisted of overgrown weeds. There was a well in the center, its bucket stuck at the top, and Arthur lazily gestured to it. “All yours.”

Striding forward, Nora lowered the bucket into the well, and began to pull up some water. Maxson moved behind her as soon as she bent over, his hands grasping her waist and his groin pressing against her ass. 

Nora jumped, and as the water came up, she grabbed the bucket, and tossed the water over him, pulling to get away from him even as some of the water soaked her tunic. “Get  _ off,” _ she growled.  _ “This  _ is why I have the runes.”

Water drenched him but he paid it no mind, one hand smacking the now-empty bucket away and grasping her hip again, the other wrapping around her midsection to pull her up and back against him. “And you  _ have _ your runes, princess,” he purred. “But you cannot take  _ all _ my fun away, hm? Let me play with you, just a little.”

Nora grunted, grabbing the arm wrapped around her torso. “So what, whenever I want something from you, I have to, what, pay some kind of toll?”

“Mm, sure. Let’s call it a toll. You want water? I’ll give you water, but you must give me something in return,” he replied, grinding against her. 

Nora’s hand was already soaked, and she whispered briefly, gesturing up at him. All the water in the well spewed out and smacked into him. It had burnt one of her most powerful spells for the day, but it was worth it. 

There was no time to react before Arthur was sent flying backward, his hold on her released, and he was soon on the ground, sliding along the dead grass on his back, eventually coming to a stop with a heavy groan. “You’re going to regret fighting,” he grumbled, though he didn’t get up. 

Still in control of the water, Nora lifted it from the ground, perfectly clean, including from everywhere around him - except from him - and then lifted it back into the well, stooping to pick up the bucket with one hand as she collected some of the water from it. 

“I’m not paying a toll to drink water,” she told him firmly. 

“Just go,” he hissed, waving one hand at her from the ground. “I’ll collect it later.”

Taking the bucket into the kitchen, Nora found an old jug, and with some of the water from the bucket, she cleaned it off, then filled it up, and took a long drink, gasping when she was done. She...was still wet from all the well water, but that was fine. She would take her clothes off and dry them out back in the wizard’s room. 

Heading back with the bucket, she was still hungry. And with Arthur being a bastard, she was unlikely to get anything soon. She was going to have to make her studying a little lighter, rather than thinking too hard. At least until Arthur decided he would feed her, of course. 

* * *

It was a couple hours later by the time he approached her again, entering the library and stepping up to the table, only to abruptly drop what was on his shoulder onto it—a deer. A dead deer, to be exact. It hadn’t been bled or skinned and was just freshly killed, but she’d complained about being hungry, so he was giving her something to eat. 

“Princess,” he called in a sing-songy tone. 

Nora hurriedly dressed. Her clothes were still slightly damp, but she pushed open the study door. And there, lying on the table, was a dead deer. “You’re a bastard,” she called to him, and disappeared back into the study, finding a little piece of wood and pulling some thread from her dress. Hurrying out, she summoned her unseen servant.

“Lift that up and follow me,” she told it, and began heading for the kitchen. The deer carcass lifted into the air and floated after her. 

“You said you were hungry,” he mumbled, eyeing where there should have been a person but was just air carrying a carcass while he followed. “I told you I’d feed you, and I kept my word. Or did you take it to mean I would also spoon feed you, as well?”

“Well, given that I don’t trust you not to lace my food with anything, it’s probably best that you just brought me the dead thing, isn’t it?” she sniped. A flurry of orders came after it - put the deer down, build a fire, prepare the carcass, skin it, carve it,  _ make dinner _ \- and in almost no time at all, there was meat roasting over the fire, and Nora’s stomach rumbled again as she waited. 

Maxson was not fond of magic, though the fact there was a curse put on him easily explained that; still, with whatever the thing was running around the kitchen and preparing food right before his eyes even though he couldn’t actually  _ see _ it, just what it was doing, he had to admit that it was… interesting. If not unsettling. 

But by the time meat was roasting over the fire, he’d grown bored, and found himself sitting at the table, watching whatever it was Nora was doing to try to keep himself entertained. 

Nora made sure not to go too far from the servant, but she ended up pulling up buckets of water and emptying them into the large wooden sink before she started to pull plates and cups off of the shelves. Thick layers of dust covered the place, and so she swapped places with the servant, ordering it to wash and clean everything. The fact that it was magic meant that even as she was carefully turning the pieces of meat, the dishes were being washed in an inhuman amount of time. Five minutes later, the servant was done, so Nora ordered it outside to start weeding. Hopefully there might be some seeds or something. She knew vegetables took a while to grow, but it might be worth trying to plant  _ something. _

_ “What?” _ she finally asked, turning around to look at the young lord. 

“Do you plan on staying long?” he asked, one eyebrow arched. 

“Well if you like, I can walk out that gate right now,” Nora retorted, gesturing to where the hallways would lead her outside. 

Maxson stood and slowly approached her. “No. No need to leave,” he replied, glancing her up and down. “But if you’re thinking you might want to, I can change your mind by making your legs go numb.”

“I told you, if you hurt me-”

“Not from pain, princess,” he corrected, tipping his chin down a little. 

“Well,” she fumbled her words, “it’s not like I could stop you, so why do you care about changing my mind?”

“That’s true, I don’t really care.” He stepped a bit closer. “But hearing how you want it is much sweeter.”

She crossed her arms. “Well, I don’t want it, in case the water in your face earlier was any reminder. So think that over, won’t you.”

The servant returned to cooking, the meat turning over occasionally behind them.

Abruptly, he grabbed her waist, roughly pulling her against him while his other arm wrapped around her to firmly hold their bodies together, the hand on her waist sliding back to her ass. “Again, whether you want it or not really doesn’t matter to me.”

Nora could  _ feel _ his erection against her thigh and her cheeks burned. The only thing she had was-

The unseen servant darted over, punching Arthur squarely in the back. 

He was sent stumbling forward a couple steps, Nora being taken with him, before he turned around and swiped in the air to try and strike whatever had hit him, one arm still around Nora’s waist. “Call it off, princess,” he growled. 

“Or  _ what?!” _ she snapped. 

“I have a high pain tolerance. Can you say the same?” he asked, his eyes darting around. 

Waving her hand, Nora directed her unseen servant to place its hand on Arthur’s thigh, close to his balls. “Try me.”

Heat fueled from rage ran up his neck and face, and he just barely squeezed her side before releasing, letting her go and holding his hands up. “Call. It. Off.”

Nora pushed away from him and stepped back, brushing down her clothes. The servant flew away, back over to the meat, and then began to plate it up, ready for the both of them to eat. She staggered over to the sink and grabbed a clean glass, finding some clean water still in the bucket and pouring herself a drink. 

“There.”

He remained where he was for a long few moments, cautiously watching her and where other things in the room were moving. Hell, he’d almost lost his fucking  _ balls,  _ and he was still enraged, so he had to calm down—but just looking at her was making it worse. She was the first person he’d ever considered not killing since being cursed and  _ this _ was the result?

“Hurry up and finish eating,” he hissed, turning on his heels and starting toward the door. “I want you back to work as soon as you’re done.”

Pulling up a chair, Nora made her way leisurely over to sit on it, and accepted the knife and fork her unseen servant handed to her. “I’m going to eat this nice and slowly like I was trained to,” she told him, “and then I’ll get back to work. But just because I’m helping you doesn’t mean you get to give me orders,  _ my lord.  _ Got it?”

He’d only made it a foot away from the door when her  _ snark _ hit his ears; Arthur froze, his fists balling and unballing. Quickly, he turned around, grabbing one of the wooden chairs at the table and chucking it across the kitchen and into the wall, where it broke. “I am  _ tired _ of your games,” he snarled while stepping up onto the table and moving toward her. 

“My  _ games?” _ she repeated, glaring at him. 

“I kept you alive for a  _ reason, _ princess,” he said, jumping off the table beside her, “And that reason wasn’t to test my patience and backtalk the entire time. If you refuse to do as you’re told, then you are not useful to me.” He stepped closer, towering over her. “And if I can’t kill you, then I will lock you away so I don’t have to  _ deal _ with you.”

“Oh I’m sorry, I didn’t realise I couldn’t  _ eat a damn meal!” _ she yelled. “Fuck you. I  _ will _ go back to work. I’m just not doing it on  _ your _ terms, got it?”

“And I didn’t realize I couldn’t live on my own fucking estate without some high and mighty princess thinking she had the right to come kill me because I scare her people. Now, you  _ eat,  _ and you do it  _ quickly,  _ and then you  _ work.” _

Nora rolled her eyes. “Are you finished?” she snapped. 

Without a word, he turned, leaving the kitchen. 

The food was good, and Nora wolfed it down, eating several slices before she was full, despite what she’d said about eating it slowly. She was just too hungry to care about it being  _ ladylike _ or not.

* * *

Nora had managed to get the wizard’s old room neat and tidy and  _ clean _ by the end of the day with the help of a repeated summoning from her servant. His organic components had long rotted away by now but she found all sorts of others that she could use, and hopefully Arthur would let her outside long enough to get some more. 

She finally found herself yawning, and when she looked up, it was pitch black outside. Nora had never  _ seen _ it this dark before. In the city, there were always lights from the lamps that lined the streets outside or the torches that lit the castle, and to be so completely in the dark…

She shivered, picking up a candle, and headed out of the room. “Arthur?” she called.

When she got to the main hall, he finally answered, though he didn’t make it known where he was. 

“Princesssssss,” he drawled. “So good to see you.”

"Were you waiting for me?" she asked, her brow furrowed.

“I was growing  _ bored,” _ he answered. “But what are you doing wandering around, hm? Calling for me?”

“It’s  _ dark,” _ she pointed out. “Unless you plan to work me to death, I need to sleep, and I can’t sleep in there. Is there a room I can use?”

Arthur finally revealed himself by jumping down behind her, having been standing on an upper platform area; because it was night, he was already shifted. “You could always use  _ my _ room,” he replied, one arm wrapping around her waist and pulling her back against him. 

Grunting, Nora shoved at him. “No,” she said firmly. “I’m not sleeping in your room with you.”

“I didn’t say it was an option,” he growled, holding her tighter. “Besides, you’re tired and clearly alone and unarmed, so what’s to stop me from dragging you there?” Arthur lowered his head so his mouth was right by her ear, his voice dropping an octave. “May as well come along willingly.”

_ Shit. _ Nora realised she’d used up all the smaller spells from earlier on mending things. “So what if I manage to get away and find somewhere else?”

One arm unraveled from around her waist, his hand sliding down her belly until the tips of his claws just barely grazed over her clothed mound. “Mm, there will be…  _ consequences,” _ he answered. 

“You  _ know _ you can’t just do as you please,” she hissed, gripping his arm tightly as she tugged at it. “Don’t think I won’t have some consequences of my own.”

“I would be disappointed if you didn’t.” Ignoring her tugs, he slid his hand a bit lower until he was cupping her, and at the same time, he pressed his cold nose against the side of her neck. “Now, do I have to carry you, or will you walk on your own?”

Nora slapped at his arm. “Get  _ off _ of me. I can walk without you.”

He let out a deep chuckle and grinned, then picked her up in his arms, anyway. “Let’s go, princess.”

They weren’t too far from his room already, so he didn’t have to carry her for long, but as soon as they were inside, he kicked the door shut behind him and roughly tossed her onto the bed, then prowled after her. Winded, Nora scrambled up, almost falling off the bed as she tried to push herself off the other side of the mattress. 

He grabbed onto her ankle, yanking her back toward him. “Just where do you think you’re going? I thought you were  _ tired. _ Don’t you want to sleep?”

“Not with you,” Nora snapped, kicking out at him. “Get off. Get  _ off.” _

“Come now, I’ll try to be gentle, I promise,” he said while snatching her other foot after she kicked his shoulder. He pinned her legs down on the bed with one hand, the other pushing her hips so she rolled onto her belly, and Arthur then climbed over her, pinning her down with his weight. 

Panting, Nora let her head fall, and she went limp underneath him, whimpering in frustration. 

“What’s wrong, princess? You have no more fight left in you?” he asked, shifting so his hips were flush against her ass. “Don’t give up on me now, we were just getting started.”

“I just want to sleep,” she growled. “Without some random man grabbing at me. Is that so difficult? Is that so  _ wrong?” _

A cold nose pressed against the back of her neck before a long, soft tongue dragged across her skin. “So you’re telling me you’d actually rather face consequences for sleeping elsewhere than stay here and play with me?”

“I don’t think I know you well enough for that yet,” Nora retorted. “Are you going to  _ let _ me find my own room,  _ my lord?” _

Humming, Arthur thought on the question. “I think so. But first…” one hand slipped beneath her body, skimming along her stomach and moving toward her core, “I want to play a little.”

Tensing up, Nora wriggled furiously beneath him in his grip, trying to pull out from beneath him. “You can’t be  _ serious.” _

“Don’t worry,  _ princess,”  _ he purred, “You’ll still have virgin blood.” He pushed his hand beneath the hem of her pants and underwear, slowly moving lower until he was cupping her mound. 

Shifting as best she could, Nora wasn't sure if she was trying to push his hand away or invite it in. Her breath caught, and the moment his fingers touched her she whined. "But  _ why?"  _ she found herself panting. 

“Why  _ not?” _ Arthur countered, one finger grazing along her slit. 

The runes on his skin  _ tingled _ a little, as if warning him ‘no further.’

“You’re just  _ bored,” _ she protested. “This...doesn’t  _ mean _ anything.”

“Aw, what? You  _ want _ it to mean something? You want me to  _ love _ you, girlie? You want to be loved by a monster, is that it?” He gently pressed the pad of his finger against her clit without rubbing. 

“Idiot,” she groaned. “I-I don’t want to be  _ used for _ your f-fun! I’m not,” she broke off, her voice pitching into a little whine, “I’m a- a  _ princess,  _ I’m supposed to- _ oh!“ _

“Mhm, you  _ are _ a princess,” he agreed, his finger rubbing in slow, gentle circles. “That’s what makes this even better.” Leaning down a bit more, Arthur bit at her shoulder, though his teeth didn’t break the skin. “Tell me, does it feel good? Being touched by someone else? You say you don’t want it, but I’m finding that hard to believe.”

Gripping the bedclothes as best she could, Nora rolled her hips, not sure if she was trying to get away from his touch or  _ closer  _ to it. Not that it mattered; she wasn’t going anywhere, and there was a warm coil in her belly from those little circles. “Fuck,” she gasped,  _ “off.” _

“Ooh, here’s a question: have you ever even  _ cum _ before?” he asked while grinding his hips against her ass, still not letting up on rubbing her clit. “Or are you so  _ ‘pure’ _ that you’ve never even  _ touched yourself?” _

“Nnnna _ aahh,” _ she groaned. “F-fuck, not your-  _ oh _ \- business!”

“I think it is.” Maxson lowered his mouth to her ear. “Do you wanna cum, princess? Hm? Do you want me to make you cum? All you gotta do is say the word.”

“Off,” Nora grunted, wriggling as best she could.

“But you’re getting close, I can tell. You sure you want me to stop?” His fingers started moving faster without pressing any harder. 

“Mhm!” she squeaked, her cheeks burning as her lips parted. She was trying  _ so  _ hard not to pant but the little coil of pleasure was growing tighter. 

“What are you thinking about right now, little girl? Maybe wishing you hadn’t put these runes on us so I could properly fuck you?” Maxson bucked his hips against her ass and rubbed her clit a little faster. 

Nora couldn’t help moaning. It was practically a fairytale at this point that princesses and monsters mixed in all the ways that counted, and there was an  _ ache _ just above where his hand was touching her that begged for him. But the runes weren’t  _ just  _ to preserve her virginity. And she knew she was right to have painted them on - he’d hardly countered her accusation that he would torture her - but there was a part of her that knew that if he stripped her off and pushed into her now, the runes might not work in keeping him out. Willpower was such a fickle thing. 

“Listen to  _ that,” _ he purred. “Someone’s not as innocent as they pretend to be. What are you imagining, me bending you over, fucking you so numb that you can’t walk? Knotting you?  _ Breeding _ you?” 

_ “Knotting?” _ she gasped, her brow furrowing. She was almost- going to- so  _ very close to- _

“But I really  _ shouldn’t,”  _ Arthur sighed dramatically, pulling his hand out from between her legs before she was able to tip over the edge. “I wouldn’t want to  _ ruin _ you, after all.”

Panting, Nora growled at him, trying to glare at him over her shoulder. “Let me  _ go.” _

A wide grin stretched across his face. “As you wish. But don’t forget: there will be consequences if you sleep elsewhere.” 

With that, Arthur pushed up off her. 

Nora scrambled off the bed, and strode quickly out of the bedroom, trying to find another. It wasn’t exactly  _ difficult _ to locate one, and when she found a small place with a comfy bed and a few closets, she went in. The door had a keyhole but no key, so she closed it and got undressed, leaving her clothes draped over a nearby chair. Everything was dusty, but she could fix that tomorrow with a few summons. 

Her hand slid down between her thighs as she lay in bed, feeling how  _ wet _ she had gotten. She couldn’t lie - the man was attractive. But she wanted the actual  _ him,  _ not whatever bastardisation had been brought to life by the curse. 

So she found herself picturing  _ that _ man, one hand over her mouth, the other working between her thighs the way it had hundreds of times in the past for all Arthur’s taunting. And he had left her  _ so close  _ that she didn’t take long to reach the edge, heat and relief filling her body. Nora turned over, laying on her belly, as she caught her breath. 

She could’ve sworn she heard a voice say  _ ‘sweet dreams’ _ outside her door. 


	4. Chapter 4

She hadn’t noticed it when she had been  _ resting  _ in the dungeons, but the estate was cold when she woke up. She  _ was  _ quite early, but still - she shivered as she got out of bed, moving over to her chair, dazed. Her clothes were not there. 

_ For fuck’s sake. _

“MAXSON!” she yelled. “ARTHUR MAXSON!” 

There had to be clothes in here somewhere, and she hurriedly rooted through the closets. But there was nothing, except scrappy lace and satin. The room was empty of anything she could wear. Turning around, Nora hurriedly covered her breasts with both arms. 

He stood in the doorway, curiously watching, his eyes slowly looking her up and down as she turned to face him. “You screamed, Your Highness?”

“You’re an asshole and I’m cold,” she said plainly. “I’m not wearing any of  _ that  _ and you and I both know it.”

The corners of his mouth twitched. “Well, princess, I realize you’re used to living under better conditions and wearing better clothing, but given the circumstances…” he glanced down to her chest, then her hips, “It was the best I could do.”

“I’m sure,” she sniped. “Fine. Get out of my room and I’ll get to work on fixing your  _ curse  _ problem. But it’s going to take longer now that I’m going to be cold the entire time.”

“I’ll get a servant to light a fire,” he said, beginning to turn, but stopped. “No, wait, I killed them all. I will light one. See you in the library.” Flashing her a grin, Arthur disappeared through the doorway. 

Nora rolled her eyes and waved a hand. Light glowed around her, and then rippled. An image of her clothes appeared on her body. Though she was still cold, it would keep Arthur from  _ seeing  _ her naked at the very least. She followed him out. She needed to clean up, though. It had been two days since she’d had a bath. Which would make her first port of call the well outside, then. So she changed her course to head there first. 

The kitchen was dark, but she found an old sponge and some soap and went outside, pulling up a bucket of water. The fact that her illusory clothes didn’t get wet seemed a little funny to her but she was too distracted cleaning off to worry about it. 

Entering the library, Maxson didn’t actually light a fire, instead plopping down in a chair and kicking his feet up as he waited for Nora to join him. He didn’t expect her to take long, figuring she’d get to work right away, but when he was waiting for longer than a minute, he just grew annoyed. 

With a dramatic sigh, he stomped one foot onto the ground, then the other, before standing up and starting off to find her—which, surprisingly, didn’t take long. But what he walked in on—out on?—was… confusing.  _ Concerning. _

He fucking hated magic. 

“What is  _ that?” _ he asked, glaring at her body. 

Nora glanced down. “What?” she said, and poured another bucket of water over her head. 

“You’re wet but…  _ not,” _ he explained. “Why?”

“It’s a spell,” she told him, giving him a wide smile, putting the bucket down. She began to squeeze her hair, walking towards him with the aim to head into the kitchen. “Why?”

Arthur’s arm shot out in front of her, blocking her path. “A spell for what?”

“A spell to make myself look different,” she replied. “Hey, maybe I could make myself look like  _ you _ one day.”

“Maybe. Or maybe that’s stupid,” he mumbled, reaching his free hand out to touch the fabric on her shoulder—but all he touched was wet skin. Pulling his hand back, he rubbed his fingers together before flicking his eyes to her face. “Looks are deceiving, I suppose.”

Shrugging, Nora kept on wringing out her hair. “Yes, they are. Now, I need food.”

He hummed but dropped his arm so he wasn’t blocking her anymore, then jerked his chin toward the kitchen. “Go on, then.”

She sauntered past him into the kitchen. She needed a brush and-

Arthur’s hand came down on her bare, wet ass, smacking both cheeks at the same time just as she walked past him. 

Spinning around, Nora would’ve thrown something at him, but there was nothing close. Rolling her eyes, she kept going into the room, moving immediately away from the door to start hunting around. 

“Just wanted to test something,” he mumbled, following her inside. “What are you hungry for? Work? You could get to work.”

“I’m hungry for food, the same way every human is,” she said. “I need three meals a day. I’m no druid. I can’t  _ make _ food appear.”

Leaning against the table, he tapped his fingers on the wood. “Am I expected to hunt again?”

Nora shrugged. “It’s your estate, you’re the host, and I’m doing - _ you- _ a favour.”

“‘Host’?  _ ‘Favor’?” _ Maxson slowly started rounding the table, approaching her. “Lest you forget, princess,  _ you _ invaded  _ my _ home with the intention to kill me for merely existing—the only one granting a favor here is me by not killing you.”

Nora didn’t move. He wasn’t  _ wrong-  _ but then, neither was she, right? “And yet I  _ do  _ still need to eat, so thanks for sparing my life, but it would be nice to prolong it with some food.”

Standing only a foot away, he stared her down, releasing a slow, irritated breath from his nose. “Work,” he ordered before turning and heading out the door. He’d hunt just so she’d shut her mouth and stop complaining and  _ get to fucking work.  _

Nora wanted to shoot back with  _ or what,  _ but he was already gone, and so she collected another jug of water and headed out of the door, going to the library to carry on with her research. She knew a bit about spells and their composition, but trying to tackle a  _ curse… _ that was something else entirely. Casting spells was all about intent - putting your will onto someone else by using the power of the world. So...was a curse similar? She wished she had some more books to work with. Or someone she could ask-

_ Of course.  _ Now she would just need to find some copper wire. 

It was maybe an hour or so later when Arthur returned, carrying two bowls of soup into the library. He approached her, holding one out expectantly, waiting for her to take it. 

Nora had been working so long that she didn’t realise that she had lost her  _ disguise self _ spell, so when she looked up at the sound of Arthur coming into the room, it took her a second to see her own nudity. Her hands clasped into fists. She could either cast the spell again, or….

Fuck it. “Thanks,” she muttered, taking the bowl from him. 

He made a quiet noise as she took the dish, then sat down in a nearby chair, kicking his feet up. “Anything yet?” he asked, motioning toward the table with all the books on it. 

“No,” she replied. “But I have an idea.” She blew on the bowl, and sipped at it gently. “Well, so long as I can find some copper wire in the wizard’s room. And if not, pretty sure there’s wire all over the place here.”

“Mhm.” He obnoxiously slurped his soup while his eyes fixated on her chest. “Probably.”

Her cheeks flushed, but Nora ignored him, taking a seat, crossing her legs in the way she did when she was alone and her tutors weren’t there to lecture her on  _ not _ doing it. “Had a fun morning?” she asked between slurps. 

“I don’t know, did you have a fun night?” he retorted, looking at her face again, one of his brows arching. 

A wave of heat ran through her. “That’s none of your business.”

Maxson grinned. “When the smell of your orgasm is filling up the entire estate, then yes, it is my business,” he countered. “But I do have to say that it’s a bit unfair you went on without me.”

“You  _ stopped,” _ she muttered. “I didn’t ask you to do  _ any  _ of that.”

“You didn’t  _ want _ me to stop, then?”

“I didn’t want you to  _ start _ either, but you could’ve done me the courtesy of finishing me off if you were going to play with me,” she shot back. 

Setting his bowl down, Arthur stood and moved behind her, leaning over and placing his hands on the edge of the table so he was caging her in. “And what about now? Do you want me to start  _ now,  _ since I’m a man instead of a beast?”

“I want to eat my soup,” Nora complained. “I’m not even  _ thinking  _ about it until I’m done eating.”

“That’s fine. Eat your soup, princess. Don’t mind me.” One hand went to her side, sliding inward toward her stomach and then up toward her chest. 

“If I spill this on myself it’s going to be hot and it’s going to hurt,” she warned him. “Next time bring me a sandwich if you’re  _ this _ determined to  _ play  _ during mealtimes.”

His free hand brushed her hair onto one shoulder and he kissed along the bare side of her neck. “Then don’t spill it,” he said quietly, finally cupping her breast. 

“I’ll throw it at you,” she warned, stiffening. 

“Will you, now?” he asked, gently pinching her nipple. “Why? Because you’re afraid that I’ll give you what you’ve been craving? Because you’re afraid your future husband will never satisfy you the way a monster can, whether you admit you want it or not? Or because you’re afraid that I’ll ruin you for good?” He nipped her earlobe and the hand that wasn’t on her chest slid down between her legs, finger just barely grazing over her clit. 

“N-no,” she reached for his hand, “i-it’s because I’m  _ hungry  _ and I-I don’t want you ruining my  _ mealtimes _ when I’m trying to eat.”

“Put the bowl down, princess,” he quietly ordered; his voice was husky in her ear. 

“Let me  _ eat, _ ” she insisted. 

“Put it down,” he ordered again, this time a bit firmer. 

Groaning in frustration, and a little hunger, Nora put the bowl down. It was going to get  _ cold, _ but she did as he ordered. “Happy now, my lord?”

“I am,” he admitted. With that, Maxson wrapped his arms around her midsection and pulled her tightly against his chest, standing up straight and taking her with him. He was decently taller than her, so with their height difference, it meant she wasn’t touching the ground as he carried her over to the chair he’d been sitting in earlier, taking his seat once again with her in his lap, her back against his chest. 

Grunting, Nora raised her hands a little, not even sure why. Maybe she just wanted to protect herself somehow. Even still, the sensation of Arthur sat beneath her was a mixture of warmth and softness and  _ hard _ muscle and-

Well. 

He wasn’t exactly  _ subtle, _ pressed up against her rear like this. 

“So now you’ve stolen me from my lunch,” she grumbled, “what now?”

“We play,” he answered, pulling her legs apart so they were on the outside of his knees. His hand then returned to between her thighs, fingers running up and down her folds before a single one was grazing over her clit. “You’ll enjoy it. I promise.”

Her breath caught. “O-oh.” In the back of her mind was an  _ I know I will, because look! Protective runes! _ But she didn’t say that - her gaze narrowed to where his fingers were between her thighs, and she trembled at the touches. His hand was much  _ rougher _ than her own, and as they stroked over her folds, she swallowed, not sure what to do with her own. 

“What did you think about last night while you were touching yourself, hm?” he asked while rubbing slow, small circles on her clit. 

“W-what you’ll be like when- when the  _ curse  _ is broken,” she panted, her hands gripping his arms tightly. She licked her lips. 

“Oh? So you thought of me, no longer cursed, touching you?” His finger sped up just a bit. 

“Yes,” she panted, her nails digging into him a little.

“And what was I doing? How was I touching you? Like this?” A second finger was pressed to her clit and rubbing at the same speed. 

“Mmm,  _ mhmm, _ uhhh,” Nora whined, trembling. That  _ ache  _ was back, reminding her that his fingers just  _ there  _ weren’t enough, not really. “W-what’s-  _ hnnn-  _ knotting?”

Turning his head a bit, he grinned against the side of her face. “I did mention knotting you last night, didn’t I?” His free hand slid up her body to cup her breast. “Maybe I’ll just show you sometime.”

Moaning, Nora closed her eyes. “S-show me…?”

“Mhm. Fuck you at night, when I’m shifted.” He pressed a bit rougher on her clit, rubbing firmly. “It ties us together after I cum to make sure you take it all.”

“T-ties?” she panted, as the heat coiled above his fingers. If he kept this up-

“Mm, you’ll see one day,” he purred. “Because I  _ will _ knot you, princess—and you’ll cum on it alone.”

Abruptly, Maxson pulled his fingers away from her clit, cutting off the stimulation he’d been giving her. 

Nora shook, trembling, a complaining whine the only response she let herself give him as the pleasure that had been growing washed away, leaving her throbbing and unfulfilled. “W-who says I’ll  _ let _ you?”

“I don’t  _ need _ you to let me, but you will,” he replied, running his palm along her inner thigh.

“Runes,” she gasped out. “Remember? Y-you’ll  _ literally die _ if-if I don’t.”

“True, but I’m sure there are ways around it. Regardless, you  _ will _ let me, all on your own.” Arthur’s hand returned between her legs, his fingers rubbing at her clit again. 

“I made them pretty f-f _uuuuck,“ _ she broke off, “foolproof, t-thanks! W-what were you,  _ mmm,  _ were you thinking?”

“Hm… think fucking your ass counts as taking your virginity?” he questioned almost curiously. 

Nora exhaled heavily. “N-nice  _ try,  _ but, but it’s, it’s  _ any _ u-unwanted pen-penetration,  _ anywhere.  _ So-so don’t,  _ oh, _ even tr-ah,  _ ahhh.” _

“But are you really  _ unwanting, _ princess?” His fingers sped up again. “Because you don’t sound unwanting to me.”

“I-it’s fine if- if you keep it-  _ outside,” _ Nora groaned out, her thighs trembling. She was getting close again. 

“And why not your ass, hm? It’s not part of the whole virginity thing, is it?”

“It’s  _ un-com-fuckfuckfuckfuck-!” _

He pulled his fingers away again, running them up and down her inner thigh like before. Panting, Nora slumped back against him, hips shifting as her ass rubbed at his erection. Part of her was  _ curious- _ she’d never seen a man naked before, and despite how she had fought her own embarrassment at being naked in front of him, she wondered what he looked like under those clothes. A wicked thought came to mind - casting disguise self to make herself look like him, but naked, would tell her that. 

A quiet groan escaped his chest with the increased pressure to his cock, and he couldn’t stop himself from pushing back up against her before sliding his fingers to her clit again, slowly rubbing. “You want to touch me?” he asked, gently nipping her neck. 

“No,” she gasped, but she kept rubbing her ass against him on purpose. She was wet enough that her slick was wetting his pants, and she didn’t really care. All she knew was that she was  _ throbbing _ and she wanted to cum. But she would rather die than beg him to let her. 

“Then why are you rubbing yourself on me? Because you want my cock that bad?” Maxson bucked his hips up against her. 

“B-because I want- to-  _ mmm,” _ Nora groaned, her nails digging in harder to his biceps. 

“You want to  _ what?” _ he asked, rubbing faster. 

_ “Cum,” _ she gasped, her toes curling. “Nnnnfuck!”

“That’s all you had to say,” he teased, grinning. “I’ll make you cum, princess. Don’t worry.”

Nora was already getting there, and as his fingers didn’t stop, she felt that  _ swooping  _ in her belly that heralded her orgasm, her thighs tensing up. Half of her expected his fingers to pull away and leave her  _ throbbing _ again. 

When she tipped over the edge, he helped her ride her orgasm out, still rubbing quick circles on her clit—but he never stopped even after that. His free arm wrapped around her midsection to hold her against his body while he sped up his movements, providing way too much stimulation while he relished in every sound she made. 

A series of desperate yelps escaped her as she pushed at his arm, trying to scramble out of his lap, to get away from his touch. Relief had suddenly become  _ too much, _ and Nora cried out, sweat beading on her brow as her thighs tried to close around his hand, to crush him before he could keep going. 

“Wait,” she gasped, “I- _ I-” _

“No, no, keep them open,” he growled. “Keep your legs open.”

“Y-you- I-  _ nnn-oh-fuck!” _ Wriggling against his lap, her ass rubbing  _ hard _ against his cock, Nora wanted to escape but  _ couldn’t. _

He rubbed her clit for a few more moments before finally pulling his hand away, letting her relax. “There you go,” he cooed, his palm stroking up and down her thigh. “Not so bad, yeah?”

Breathless, trembling, Nora found herself slumped against him, whining as his rough palm ran over the inside of her thigh.  _ Fuck.  _ How had she ended up here? Two days out of the castle, and she was naked, sitting in the lap of a man cursed to be an absolute  _ bastard,  _ shivering after he teased her and made her cum in a way that he  _ shouldn’t _ know how to after all this time alone. 

“W-where did you,” she swallowed  _ “learn  _ to- do- that?”

“Maybe one day I’ll tell you,” he replied with a light laugh. “But for now… I think it’s my turn to cum, wouldn’t you agree?” The hand on her thigh moved beneath her to his pants, pushing them down just enough so his cock slipped free; his other arm remained wrapped around her midsection, holding her tightly against him. 

"Wait," her voice cracked, "wait, I don't want- you're not going to…"

Her voice died away as her eyes fell on his cock. There was a  _ pulse  _ from between her thighs as she looked at it, and she licked her lips. It was...odd. She hadn't been sure what to expect and she'd had a…. _ basic  _ understanding of it, but the reality was so much… _ Thicker.  _

“Relax, princess,” he drawled, draping one of her arms behind his neck. “I won’t fuck you.” Slumping down in his chair a little, he pulled her more up his body, his arm then hooking beneath one of her legs—her other leg still on the outside of his other knee—so his cock was between her thighs. It gave him room to wrap his fingers around his shaft, but rather than stroking right away, he just rubbed the tip against her clit. “Not yet, at least.”

She dug her nails in warningly when his cock came closer, a gasp escaping her, just as she breathed in to warn him not to even  _ try-  _ and then he was rubbing that-  _ length  _ against her, directly against the sensitive nub. 

“Y-you’re not  _ going _ to,” she panted, trying to ignore the  _ wet _ noise from between her thighs. 

“Mm, no, not yet,” he agreed. “But I will. You’ll eventually beg me to fuck you and these damn runes won’t do anything to stop me because you’ll  _ want _ it.” Letting go of his cock, Arthur pressed the top of his shaft against her folds, pushing his length between her lower lips. “Now, grind.”

"Wh-  _ what?"  _ Nora panted, her brows furrowing. "You can't- you can't be  _ serious.  _ I'm not- I will  _ not  _ be, I will not get," she swallowed, "I won't."

“Come on, girlie. Just rub yourself on me. You know it’ll feel good. Hell, I’ll even let you cum again if you do.” Leaning in a little, he gently bit at the side of her breast, his eyes locking onto hers.

"Princesses," her body throbbed at the sharpness of his teeth even when he was human, "are- are very good at, at keeping themselves from things that  _ feel good  _ if they're bad ideas."

Maxson snorted a laugh. “If that was the case, you would not have touched yourself when you knew a beast was lurking around the estate and could  _ smell _ your arousal.” Rather than waiting for her to grind, he bucked his hips once, the head of his cock bumping into her clit.

Nora's breath caught. A cry escaped her, voice stuttering as the friction against her sensitive clit left her trembling. "Y-you," she panted, "that's not- you weren't  _ involved,"  _ she protested. "S-so it was fine. And you can't...anyway."

“But I could have joined you, could have made you so wet and desperate until you were needy and begging me to finally fuck you.” With his eyes still on her face, Arthur’s hips just slowly started moving, grinding against her; he dragged the flat of his tongue over her nipple. “And you know I can do it, too. You know I can easily make you wet and wanting, so much worse than you are now. Or, maybe… maybe I don’t even need to go that far.” Without turning his head, he looked toward their lower halves out of the corner of his eye. “Maybe you’re already willing.”

"No," Nora whined. "No. I won't-  _ ohhh! Fuckfuckfuck!" _

Her hand dropped to where he was rubbing up against her, touching the length of him. It felt softer than she'd thought it would, and she squeezed a little, testing the waters.

A slow, heavy exhale left his nose, and he removed his hand from his cock, instead placing it over hers and guiding her hand a bit further down so she could take more of him into her palm. “There you go.”

Both hands moved down to work him, one remaining under his as the other moved around what of him wasn't covered by them. Angling him away a little left her feeling needy for the stimulation she had lost, but a little more in control. 

Since she had both her arms in front of her now, Arthur placed his chin on her shoulder, his face turned a bit into her neck as his breathing increased. “Just imagine how it’ll feel when I’m buried inside you,” he whispered. “How good it’ll feel to cum around my cock.”

Nora's body was hot with arousal at the words but she swallowed, exhaling heavily just to move her hands a little faster up and down his cock. There was no way she  _ wasn't  _ thinking about Arthur filling her up and fucking her hard, but she fought to ignore the empty ache between her thighs to try and bring him to his peak. 

Heat was tightening in his belly and at the base of his spine as he was starting to approach the edge, and his breathing grew a bit more labored even as he placed a few kisses beneath her ear. “If you want, princess,” he panted, his arm tightening around her, “When I cum, you can push me in just enough so I finish inside you.” His lips were right behind her ear then, his cheek pressed against her. “Just so you can see how it feels to be full of cum.”

She growled, moving her hands faster up and down his cock. "Not going to."

“If you say so,” Arthur replied, grinning again. The buildup of heat was still growing tighter and was soon at the point where he was at the edge as he panted in her ear. “But if you— _mmmnn_ —if you change your mind, it should be soon, because I’m about to— _fuck_ —I’m about to cum.”

Licking her lips, Nora ignored the  _ ache  _ from between her thighs and kept up her motions. It was a good thing that he was about to cum and that she was learning how to make him, because she needed to get back to work. Yes, she did, she wasn't going to think about him bending her over the table and fucking her…

Unraveling his arm from around her waist, he placed his palm flat on her stomach, slowly sliding it up to her collarbone without going any further. It only took a couple more seconds—and a bit of readjustment of his other hand that was still wrapped around his cock, along with both of hers—until he finally tipped over the edge, his spend stringing all over the outside of her folds, mound, and lower belly as a quiet moan rumbled from his chest. 

“Fuck, princess,” he breathed. 

"Oh gods," Nora gasped, tensing. The... _ sensation  _ was unlike anything she'd ever felt before - a little bit sticky, a little bit slimy, still a bit  _ warm _ as it dripped down her stomach _ \-  _ and she pulled her hands out from beneath his, arms raising up in the air. Nora found she couldn’t even lie to herself. Despite her surprise at the act, the light  _ humiliation  _ of being covered like this...she did not find the sensation  _ unpleasant.  _ But there was no way she would be admitting that to  _ him.  _ "Wh- why did you-"

“Why did I what?” Letting go of himself, he kept one hand on her clavicle, the other moving out from beneath her leg and running his fingers along the top of her thigh, slowly moving toward where one of the strings were on her mound. “Why did I cum on you?”

"Well,  _ yes,"  _ she retorted. 

“Mm, because I wanted to,” he answered, running a finger through some of his cum on her. “Because I knew you’d like it.” Slowly, he started spreading it around, before scooping up some onto two fingers and raising them to her face. “And because it marks you as mine. Now, open your mouth.”

"Fuck no," Nora barked in a very unladylike way. "Let me get back to work. Supposedly you want me to break your curse."

“As you wish,” he purred. With that, he wiped the cum on his fingers onto her cheek before standing straight up and forcing her out of his lap, not waiting to see if she had her balance or landed on her feet. 

Nora toppled off him with a shriek of surprise, landing face first with her ass in the air. Shoving off of the floor, she bounced up onto her toes immediately, rubbing at her face to wipe his cum off of her. She glared at him. "Thanks for nothing."

“You’re very welcome,” Arthur quipped, pulling his pants back up. “If you ever decide you want more of nothing in the future, you know where to find me: I’m usually around here somewhere, waiting to be killed by an overly-ambitious princess.”

Rolling her eyes, Nora moved away, heading for the wizard's old room. Copper wire. She needed copper wire. 


	5. Chapter 5

She found some copper hidden in some old cupboards, and clung to it, sighing in relief. She only had four of these, so she needed to make them count. 

"Marienden. This is Nora. I'm fine. I'm safe. Teach me about curses."

There was a long pause. Then- _"Nora! You're alive! Palace gone crazy! Curses: like spells, just meaner. Tricky wordplay. Spell to remove them hard. Easier to find root of curse."_

Nora quickly found some more paper and a quill and ink, writing all of it down. "Maxson curse," she said, casting again. "Tell me what happened to the Maxsons." 

_"Gods' sake,"_ her tutor muttered. _"Enclave of witches. Mean, evil, died four years ago. Killed by Jonathan Maxson. Known for desire to kill anyone not ‘pure magic.’_ There was a pause and then another message came through. _"You're an idiot, girl. Maxson curse: **‘you killed my love, so love will end your line. Your blood will become unlovable.’** You unhurt?"_

"Unhurt," Nora confirmed, writing it down. "Protective runes."

_"Clever girl,"_ her tutor praised. _"Also idiot girl. They never broke the curse.”_

"Last message. I will try anyway. Tried to kill him. Failed. He's a bastard. I'm safe, just—“

Arthur’s step was light as he approached from behind, his arms abruptly wrapping around her, one hand grasping her breast and the other moving between her legs to cup her mound. “Tell whomever you’re talking to that you want to fuck me,” he whispered. 

_"—irritated._ Fuck off, Arthur."

_”Hah! I will inform your parents not to invade the estate, then.”_

Nora wriggled in Arthur's grip. "Well, you'll be pleased to know that I've got a lead," she said. "Now what do you want?"

“Mm, nothing. I was just bored, heard you talking to yourself, got curious,” he admitted, pulling away. “What is your lead?”

"I was just asking my tutor for information about curses and she gave me some," Nora replied. "I couldn't find anything here and Marienden is several centuries older than me."

He picked a piece of paper off the table and looked it over; none of it made any sense to him. “You are certainly a handful, princess.”

"The perks of being royalty," she replied. "Now unless you're here for something else, I need to work on your curse." She didn't bother snatching the paper off him. 

“Are they sending people? Your parents? I’d rather not have to fight again so soon.” Setting the paper down, he picked up a different one. 

"Once my tutor gets the word to them, they should-"

_ “Nora, your parents are very concerned about you and want to make sure you're safe. Can you confirm that to me?"  _

"His bastard tendencies are limited thanks to the runes," Nora told Marienden with a sigh. 

The elf woman laughed.  _ "That's my star pupil. Your parents have agreed to halt the invasion. Lord and Lady Maxson are asking after Arthur." _

Nora glanced over at the man. "He isn't cured. Not yet. Hopefully soon."

_ "I will let them know. Stay safe, Nora." _

"Nobody's coming to kill you," Nora told him. "Aren't you glad I got here first?"

“Mm, I suppose,” he replied, lazily tossing the paper so it fluttered into the air and eventually landed on the floor. Maxson turned and slowly started toward her, glancing her over from behind. “But how do you think your parents will react,” he hovered over her as she was leaned slightly over the table, his hands placing on the furniture beside hers, “When they find out I’ve already ruined you? And that you’ll soon let me further ruin you—and  _ willingly?” _

Nora shifted a little. "I'm not going to tell them the specifics," she said. "It's none of their business, so I'm going to keep it to myself."

“So, you’re not going to tell them how I had you coming undone on my fingers earlier, almost about to beg me just to let you finish? Or that you were stroking my cock between your thighs? Or that when I came, it was all over you? You won’t tell them any of that?”

"Well it's not really something you  _ tell  _ your parents," Nora shot back. 

“And this person you were talking to… there’s no way they could overhear us?” he asked quietly, pressing his lips to her shoulder. 

"She couldn't hear you, just me," Nora said. "Why… you know what, I'm not even going to ask why you want to know. Can I get back to work, please? You were very determined for me to be working earlier."

He sighed heavily and dramatically. “Very well. But I just thought I’d point out that, if your friend could still hear you… well, inferences are easy, aren’t they, princess?” Gently, Arthur patted her ass cheek after pulling away. “That’s all. You may get back to it.”

"Inferences?" Nora repeated, even as she knew she was falling for his trick.

“I shan’t keep you from your work any longer!” he yelled while walking out of the room. “I am a curse on you, a curse of a curse. It must be broken.”

"Oh fuck you!" she yelled back. 

A laugh bellowed from the library. 

Nora ended up writing down everything she knew about spell work next to what Marienden had told her about curses. There were some similarities to them, and she wrote down the exact words of the curse on another sheet, word by word. If there was something there about wordplay, she could work with that. But first she needed a dictionary. 

Flipping through a book he’d grabbed off the shelf, Arthur absentmindedly tore one of the pages from it after determining the story itself was useless to him, allowing the piece of paper to flutter around his head since he was partially hanging off the table. His body was stretched across the width of the piece of furniture so his shoulders and head were dangling off the edge, his legs bent at the knee rather than hanging off the other side. 

Another page was thrown away, leaving the book just slightly smaller than when he’d picked it up. “What kind of love story has a human woman falling in love with a  _ cursed bull-gorilla-wildebeest-thing?” _ he grumbled, tearing yet another page out. “Makes no sense.”

Nora glanced over at him. “He’s only cursed to  _ look  _ like an asshole but he’s actually not,” she called. “You, on the other hand, were cursed to  _ be  _ an asshole.”

Arthur pursed his lips and tore out another page, setting the book on his stomach so he could ball the paper up as he tipped his head back a little more to follow her around the room with his eyes. “Are you saying I’m  _ pretty, _ princess?”

“I’ve seen worse,” she replied.

“Mm, but have you seen  _ better?”  _ he asked just before throwing the ball of paper at her. 

Nora flicked it away, finally finding a dusty old dictionary. She flipped it open and skipped to  _ l,  _ then to  _ love,  _ and there were three short definitions under the  _ noun  _ section. 

  * _a profoundly tender, passionate affection for another person._


  * a feeling of deep affection, as for a parent, child, or friend.


  * sexual passion or desire.



Nora knew that it was going to take forever to develop the  _ first _ one, given the fact that the man was a total asshole. The second one clearly hadn’t worked - Jonathan and Jessica clearly loved their son deeply and had never given up on him. Which left…

She glanced up at the man lying on the table nearby, then back at the definition.  _ Sexual passion or desire.  _ Shoving the dictionary back into the bookshelf, she started making her way back towards the wizard’s room. 

Another wad of paper that he’d torn from the book was thrown at her, the book itself getting tossed to his side. “What are you doing?”

“I’m going to have a conversation with my tutor,” she replied. “Why?”

He grunted. “I’m bored.” One hand slipped beneath his shirt, scratching at his bare stomach. “Did you find something? You seem rushed.”

“Yes, but I don’t want to give you false hope,” she replied, reaching the door. Half of her expected some reaction, for him to stop her from entering.

His eyes narrowed and he rolled onto his side. “Wait,” he started, quickly pushing off the table. “What do you mean? What did you find?”

“I’m not saying anything until I know,” she told him. “It might not work.”

“I don’t care,” Arthur growled, moving toward her. “Tell me anyway. I want to know.”

Nora pushed the door open, heading for the desk. “No.”

Following, he wrapped one arm around her as she moved further into the room, walking at her side while tugging her close. “You sure, girlie? Because you’ve only had a taste of what I can do to you.”

She rolled her eyes. “Fine. Let me grab some more wire.”

He hesitated but let her go, pointing a finger at her as he did. “No tricks, princess. Not like you did with these runes.”

“Yes, yes, no tricks,” she muttered crossly, grabbing as many pieces of copper wire as she could and turning around. “ROOF!”

She disappeared from in front of him. 

“Roo—“ he started to question, but when she was gone, Arthur just stared at where she’d been seconds ago before looking around. Putting his hands on his hips, he sighed dramatically. “She tricked me again,” he grumbled. “Damnit.”

Nora appeared on the roof. Fuck, it was  _ colder _ up here than she had expected it to be, and she quickly began to shiver as she pulled out the wire. “Marienden! Defined  _ love _ as  _ sexual passion or desire. _ Question: could sex break the curse?”

There was a long,  _ long _ pause. Then a sigh.  _ “Are you asking because you really want to know or because you need to know that it won’t so you can do it recreationally?” _

Nora cast another spell. “Both but preferably the first one.”

Another  _ sigh. _ _ “Hypothetically yes. Makes sense. Jonathan killed the witch’s lover. Consensual sex was probably not something Arthur needed to worry about. Good luck.” _

Taking a deep breath, Nora whispered  _ “office.”  _

She reappeared in front of him. “Ta-da.”

“Have I ever told you how much I hate magic?” Maxson murmured. She’d only been gone for, what, a couple minutes, if that? And he hadn’t even bothered moving. 

“Well, you might like it this time,” she replied. “Because I’ve got some news.”

An unenthusiastic look spread over his face despite how he’d been so nosy not long ago. “Spit it out, then,” he ordered, waving his hand nonchalantly. 

“So, I had a discussion with my tutor,” Nora said. “She told me that curses were all about the wordplay, so I did a bit of research and made sure I knew what the exact words were. The witch that cursed you told your father that you’d become  _ unlovable, _ and your father thought she meant that he would stop loving you. But that’s  _ not _ what she meant.”

As she spoke, Arthur moved away from her and started traversing around the room, fiddling with items here and there as he listened. “Mhm. He did what he could to  _ ‘cure’ _ me, or what have you. Loved me to the end. Or, he will, at least.” He pushed a couple papers aside. “But if she didn’t mean him, then what did she mean?”

“Well, your father killed her  _ lover,”  _ Nora pointed out. “So...the kind of love your parents were thinking about...wasn’t the kind that  _ she _ had in mind.”

Pausing, Maxson let the concept sink in. Those were certainly two different types of loves—and after becoming cursed, everything about him had changed. 

He turned to face her, eyes narrowed, as he looked her up and down almost suspiciously. “So, you’re saying I’m the cursed bull-gorilla-wildebeest-thing and you’re the princess who falls in love with me?” One eyebrow arched before he grinned. “How  _ cute.” _

She took a deep breath. “I’m saying that to break your curse, we need to have sex.”


	6. Chapter 6

“We need to have sex.” Arthur repeated, his grin slowly fading. 

Nora’s brow furrowed. “Yes. The thing you’ve been telling me that I’d eventually want you to do to me. You look like I told you we need to cut your head off.”

He’d been wanting to fuck her, it was true; he’d even been telling her that she’d let him do it. But now that he knew that was how the curse was to be broken… “No,” he murmured, shaking his head. Quickly, Maxson moved past her and out into the library. 

Nora blinked, watching him go, and then followed him out. This made absolutely no sense. How had the man gone from  _ yes sex  _ to  _ no sex  _ in the span of one conversation?! Was the concept of consensual sex really  _ that  _ bad to the curse? “Are- wait, are you  _ serious?!  _ What- you’re just-  _ wait, WHAT?!” _

“I said  _ ‘no,’ _ princess. That’s it. I’m not fucking you,” he growled. 

“Wha- f- gods have mercy,” Nora snapped. “Ok! Fine! I wasn’t saying we have to do it now! I was just letting you know!”

Stopping in his tracks, he spun on his heels to face her. “What is your obsession with breaking this curse, anyway? Why can’t any of you just let me live in fucking peace? It’s either you want me dead or you want to free me from something I don’t need freeing from.” He threw his arms up in the air and turned away from her. 

“You  _ asked _ me to!” Nora yelled. “Remember?! You  _ asked _ me to break it, and now that I can you’re- it’s like you don’t  _ want  _ me to!”

“I’m not its prisoner!” he snarled, shooting her a glare. “I don’t need freeing from something that isn’t holding me captive. Just… leave, princess. Go home.”

Nora’s brow furrowed. It was like she was talking to a completely different person now. What he was saying didn’t make any sense. “No,” she said. “You asked me to break it. You didn’t ask me ‘find out how’, you said  _ break it. _ So I’m going to break it.”

Crouching, his elbows went to his knees and his hands to his head. “What don’t you understand? I don’t want you here anymore. I don’t want it broken. It was a mistake.”

Nora crossed her arms. “Nope. I told your parents I was going to break your curse. If I leave, they’ll assume that I failed, and they’ll just come in with an army.”

“Then let them,” he mumbled. 

Rolling her eyes, Nora stormed back into the office. She could send two more messages, and she hoped Marienden had something useful for her, because she was about to say  _ fuck breaking the curse  _ and go back to trying to kill the man. 

“I told him what to do and he’s refusing to do it,” she told Marienden. “Do you have any advice for me? Can I persuade him somehow?”

_ “He’s what? No, never mind. You have to get him to. The curse made him unlovable. If you’re trying to ‘love’ him by sleeping with him...well.” _

“Oh, fuck, that’s clever,” Nora groaned. “I really hate witches. Fucking loopholes. Ok. Thanks for letting me know.”

_ “It is and you’re welcome, princess. I never thought that I would say this, but keep trying to sleep with him.” _

Well, that explained a few things. Nora would have to persuade him to sleep with her somehow. Which... _ god, _ the irony, given the last few days of trying to keep him  _ off _ her. She tried to remember when it was that he’d been in the dungeons with her, because that was when he had asked her to break the curse. There had to be some kind of moment where he changed into being the bastard he was right now. 

But she was out of spells to use to send a message, and her stomach growled, reminding her that she hadn’t finished her lunch before Arthur had interrupted her to play earlier.

Ok. Time to walk around the estate naked and see how long it would take for Arthur Maxson to decide he wanted to fuck her. 

* * *

Nora peeked her head into the man’s room as the sun started to set, looking around. He had managed to avoid her all day, but he would have to sleep eventually, right? Unless he was so determined to avoid her that he would avoid  _ sleeping. _ Or maybe she would find him in the room that’d she’d picked originally. 

Sitting down on the bed, Nora smoothed out the covers, and then lay down on her stomach, ass facing the door. This would be the most appealing position for him to find her in, hypothetically. 

With dusk approaching, it meant he’d shift soon, so Maxson wanted to at least get out of his clothes rather than ruin them. He didn’t expect his room to be occupied, however, so when he walked in to find a naked body stretched out on his bed, Nora’s bare ass facing the doorway, his brow raised just slightly. 

“I think you’re in the wrong room, princess,” he mumbled, glancing her over from behind as he entered. It seemed his plan of avoiding her didn’t completely work. 

“You wanted me to sleep with you last night,” she reminded him. “Am I really that boring now that you know you can fuck me whenever?”

“Well, if you  _ really  _ want to sleep in here with me, then I’m afraid you’re much too early,” he replied as he sat on the edge of the bed and started pulling his boots off. “I don’t sleep until morning, after I’ve changed back. Sorry to disappoint.”

Nora rolled onto her back and sat up next to him. “Really?” she asked. “When do you change? I’ve never seen it.”

“Oh, so you’re interested, are you?” He glanced at her over his shoulder before setting both boots to the side. “Dawn and dusk.”

She nodded, making a mental note. “Thanks. Well, I don’t plan on leaving, so unless you’re going to sleep somewhere else, this bed is big enough for the both of us, don’t you think?”

He pulled his shirt up and over his head. “I think I’m inclined to agree. You’re more than welcome to stay in my bed, but know you’ll be alone.” Standing, he carried his shirt over to a dresser that was pressed against the wall, setting it on top. “And I appreciate whatever you do in it, as well.”

Nora fell back against the mattress with a thump, her right hand going to her mouth. Right. Ok. Plan B. Glancing at him, she began to suck at her middle and ring fingers, bobbing her head a little. It was hardly as though she knew  _ exactly  _ what she was doing, but she drew her thighs up, spreading them wide open as she slid her wet fingers between them and started to rub at her clit, gasping. 

His entire body stiffened when she gasped, but he didn’t turn around right away, instead listening to the sounds she made before taking a deep breath through his nose, only then slowly turning to face her. 

“Princess,” he quietly warned. 

“Mhmm?” she groaned, moving her fingers faster.

_ “Why?” _

“Going,  _ mmm, _ to need to  _ specify,” _ she told him. “W-why what?”

After raking his eyes over her, Arthur slowly approached the mattress until he was standing beside it. “Why are you touching yourself in my bed?”

She shrugged. “You,  _ ahh,  _ s-said you’d, you’d appreciate whatever I did in it, r-right? A-and you’re not going to be here, a-and,  _ mmm, _ you’re not going to, to  _ touch _ me, so...s- _ someone _ has to.”

He was starting to regret ever speaking to her. Or really even keeping her alive. Perhaps he should have just killed her that night she’d shown up at his estate…

“You are… a difficult woman,” he huffed. “Get up.”

She didn’t, slowing her hand instead. “Why?”

“Because I said so. Now, get up, princess,” he ordered again. 

Gazing up at him, Nora licked her lower lip. “And...if I don’t?”

“Then I leave,” he answered simply. “And I still have time before I shift.”

She sat up. “What happens when you shift?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Arthur murmured before reaching forward and grabbing onto one of her legs, then yanking her to the edge of the bed in front of him. 

Gasping, Nora didn’t fight him, keeping her legs spread for him. Was this it? Was this when he fucked her?

He climbed onto the edge of the bed, leaning over her with his hips between her thighs as he was on his hands and knees. “How bad do you want me to fuck you, hm?”

“Very,” Nora whispered. “Please, Arthur. It’s...it’s  _ literally _ the only thing I want.”

Abruptly, his hand was on her jaw, roughly gripping it. “Why? Because you want to save me? Or because you  _ actually  _ want me to fuck you?”

“Both,” she replied, her words a little slurred. “No curse means it gets even better.”

“What gets even better?”

“Sex with you,” she replied. 

He snorted. “And how do you know that?”

Her cheeks burned. “Well, you- you clearly know  _ how,  _ so the only thing stopping me from enjoying it  _ more  _ is the fact that you’re cursed. So if you’re  _ not  _ cursed, it’ll be even better, because you’ll know everything  _ and  _ you won’t be under a compulsion to want to hurt me.”

“What makes you think I’ll  _ want _ you, princess?” he asked, leaning closer. “You think I’m a bastard when I’m cursed—and yeah, I am—but what makes you think I’m not the same way when I’m not cursed?” He slid the pad of his thumb over her bottom lip. “You really think I was some sweet, innocent boy who was cursed into being a monster?”

Nora licked at the pad of his thumb, kissing it. “Well then, the runes will keep me safe, won’t they? I’ll just get used to you being a total bastard all the time. I can deal with that.”

Confusion washed over his face, though it was brief. “Foolish girl,” he murmured before letting go. “I won’t fuck you. But if you’re that desperate for my attention right now, you can suck my cock.”

_ Fuck.  _ That hadn’t exactly turned out the way she’d wanted it to. But she had to make him  _ want  _ to fuck her, so despite the embarrassment churning in her belly, Nora was going to have to commit to this. Nodding, Nora glanced down at the outline of his cock. 

He looked her over again, eyes narrowed, then got out from between her legs and moved to lay beside her. “You don’t know what you’re doing, I take it?”

She shook her head. “Is it...hard to learn how?”

“Putting something in your mouth and sucking? No,” he teased. “Just mind your teeth.” 

"How are you going to, um…"

“To what?” he asked, arching one brow. 

“How do you want me to, um, do this?” she replied. 

Sighing heavily, almost dramatically, Arthur lifted his hips while he pulled his pants down to mid-thigh. “Might as well just do it to myself,” he grumbled. “Just… go at it, princess. You won’t learn until you do it.”

_ Ah, there it was again.  _ Nora reached out for his cock, running her hands up and down it. She moved up on her knees, shooting him a brief glare. “You make it sound like having someone please you is a chore,” she muttered, and then she dropped her head, her tongue running up and down the length of him. 

He was...he tasted  _ different.  _ It was kind of nice, and Nora found herself sliding a hand around the base of him to hold him up as she let her tongue play with him, licking in odd places to see if there were parts of him that were more sensitive like she was. 

_ “Teaching _ you is a cho— _ fuck.”  _ Maxson’s eyes dropped to watch her mouth as she started working him, clearly unfamiliar with what she was doing. It wasn’t  _ really _ a chore to teach her how to please him, more so annoying than anything else, but there was also a hint of excitement, as well. 

“Here,” he murmured, sitting up on one elbow and reaching his other hand down to where hers was around his cock, guiding her hand further down so the head was revealed from beneath his foreskin. “Suck.”

What had he said? Mind the teeth? Nora carefully wrapped her lips around the top of him and started to suck gently, glancing up at him. The more she did it...fuck, she was getting  _ hotter, aroused,  _ and she moaned a little. 

A quiet noise escaped him as his hand moved up to her hair, fingers threading into the dark locks. “You can suck harder than that, girlie. Put some effort into it.”

Kneeling up a little, Nora had to push her ass into the air as she used the leverage to move her mouth a little further down his cock. She sucked harder on him, both hands braced on his thighs. She managed to lick him a little as she did so. 

“There you go,” he breathed, his eyes closing. “Fuck, that’s good.” Both hands were soon in her hair, holding it back and out of her face without guiding her head. 

Pulling her mouth off, Nora looked up at him. “Is there something else I should do?” she asked him, wiping her mouth clean. 

“I already told you I’m not fucking you, princess,” he growled.

“I meant with my mouth,” she retorted. “I’m not going to sneak into your room when you’re asleep and fuck you without asking.”

Curling his lip in irritation, Arthur nudged her toward his cock. “Just suck hard and bob your head. Take as much as you can. And use your hands, too.”

Nora dropped her head and sucked his cock back into her mouth, moving her head up and down the length of him. He was  _ thick  _ and she wasn’t used to it, but she did what she could with what she could get in. The  _ noise  _ her mouth made as she worked him over was embarrassing, but it was easy to forget it as the heat between her thighs grew and her cheeks began to burn with the effort of what she was doing. Her hands rubbed over what of him she couldn’t fit in. 

_ “Mmmfuck,” _ Arthur groaned, his eyes closing again and head tipping back. He leaned up onto one elbow again, leaving just one hand in her hair, but slowly started using it to guide her head up and down after she’d seemed to become more comfortable in her movements. “Bet you didn’t think you’d be sucking my cock, did you? Probably thought I’d be bending you over the side of the bed, giving in to your demands, huh?” he panted, not actually expecting a reply. 

The thought of him fucking her made her moan. Yes, she was disappointed that he wasn’t giving in. But... _ fuck,  _ she was starting to like this. Maybe a little too much. 

Heat was slowly coiling at the base of his spine; he bucked his hips once.  _ “Mmmnn, _ bet you’d also like me to eat you out, wouldn’t you? Get my head between your thighs and my— _fuck_ —and my tongue on your clit.” 

_ Oh.  _ Her stomach did a strange  _ falling  _ sensation and Nora couldn’t help wondering what that would be like, to have the scratching sensation of his beard down there as he devoured her. Moaning again, she tensed, wanting to rub her thighs together for some relief. 

“You like that idea?” Maxson asked, watching her while he dragged his tongue along his bottom lip. “No one’s ever eaten you out before, huh, princess? I’d be the first, wouldn’t I?” He pushed her head down a bit further than she’d gone before, forcing her to take in more of his cock.

She would correct him later, and she slapped at his thigh as he pushed in  _ too far.  _ The runes flared up warningly, that feeling of  _ choking _ mirrored on him. 

The tightening in his throat sent him into a momentary panic; he released her hair, his hand moving to his collarbone as he gasped, though the feeling was quickly gone. And as soon as he realized  _ why _ it had happened, Arthur growled and flopped onto his back rather than leaning on one elbow. “I hate these fucking runes,” he grumbled. 

Nora could breathe a little better, and went back to bobbing her head, sucking hard and rubbing at the base of his shaft to get him to cum. How was it going to taste? Was she going to be able to swallow it all? Would she  _ want  _ to? 

The heat that had built up in his gut hadn’t gone away, so once she was back at it, he was reminded just how damn  _ good _ it felt to have her sucking his cock. A heavy exhale escaped him as his eyes slipped closed, fingers finding their way into her hair again, though this time he was sure not to guide her head no matter how difficult that was. 

Leaning back up on his other elbow, he watched as she worked. “Look at me.”

Her eyes found his, and she moved her head a little faster. 

Sitting up, he made sure he was still leaned back just enough to give her room while also being able to watch her, and a quiet moan escaped him.  _ “Mmm,  _ I’m close. What do you think about me coming down your throat, hm?” he asked breathlessly. 

Nora moaned softly. The truth was she had no experience with any of this, but she wanted to  _ know.  _ So she nodded, making affirmative noises past the cock in her mouth. 

Briefly, his eyes closed again, another moan rumbling from his chest before he tugged her head back by her hair, his free hand moving to his cock and batting her hands away as he started to stroke himself. It only took a few seconds for him to reach the edge, the heat in his belly finally uncoiling, and he was coming on her face, stringing his spend along her cheeks, nose, and lips as he groaned. 

“Maybe next time,” he panted. 

A gasp of surprise escaped her as the mess covered her, and Nora raised her hand to her face. She felt... _ hot. _ She felt like she wanted to touch herself. Licking her lips, the taste of his cum was...it was  _ ok.  _ She wasn’t too enthused about it. But the way it  _ felt  _ on her skin made her body  _ throb  _ with arousal. 

“Mm, isn’t that a pretty sight,” he purred, dragging his thumb over one of the strings before holding it in front of her mouth. 

Nora licked his thumb. She knew she had to clean her face off, and her eyes darted around the room. There was a piece of cloth hanging from a hook nearby, next to what must’ve been an old sink, and she began to slide off the bed. 

“Where do you think you’re going, princess?” he asked, grabbing onto her arm to keep her from leaving the bed entirely. 

Nora squeaked. “Wait,” she glanced down at his soft cock, “aren’t- aren’t you done?”

“I am,” he confirmed while yanking her over him again. “But I want you to swallow the rest.” With that, Arthur wiped up another string with his thumb, and held it in front of her face, repeating the action until she was clean. 

Sighing, Nora let him do it, licking up every bit of the mess that he presented to her. “If I do this for you all the time, will you let me stay in your bed with you?” she asked. 

“You won’t persuade me to fuck you, little girl, so I hope your excuse is that you’re just cold and my bed is warmer,” he replied, releasing her arm. “Besides, I already told you, I don’t sleep at night, so you’ll be sleeping alone if you’re in here.”

Nora bit her lip. “Fine,” she said. 

“Fine,” he mimicked, glancing down to her mouth. “Now, I need to finish undressing all the way before I shift, so…” he grabbed her waist and picked her up, setting her at his side rather than leaving her atop him like she had been, “If you don’t mind.”

Nora leaned back against the bed, watching him as he stripped off. Her eyes followed the movements, and the sculpted muscle beneath his clothes. It felt... _ strange  _ to be in front of a naked man like this. Ironic, considering that  _ she  _ was the one trying to sleep with him and not the other way around. 

Pushing his pants down and off, Maxson got off the bed and made his way back to the dresser, setting the article of clothing with his shirt. “I shift back at dawn. If you plan to still be here when I return, then do make it interesting for me, yeah?”

Her head tilted. “Any suggestions?”

Arthur turned his head to look at her over his shoulder. “Prep yourself.”

Nora blinked. “I thought you said you weren’t going to fuck me.”

“I’m not,” he answered, finally turning to face her. “Not the way you think, at least.”

“I don’t understand,” she admitted. 

“I’m going to fuck your ass, princess.”

Her cheeks burned. Mouth falling open, she felt a surge of heat rush through her body, surging between her thighs.  _ Oh.  _ “And if I don’t?” she mumbled. 

“Mm… then I’ll probably just edge you again without actually letting you cum while I finish on your face,” he answered. 

A princess should not be aroused by the thought of being so thoroughly degraded like that. But oh  _ gods,  _ as Nora rubbed her thighs together, she was...she absolutely was. And Arthur could probably  _ smell  _ it on her. 

“You,” she began, but didn’t really know what else to say. 

Glancing her over, a smirk lifted the left corner of his mouth before he started toward the door. “You’ll find everything you need in here. See you soon, princess.”

Nora watched him leave. So...that hadn’t exactly worked either. But when he was gone, she moved over to the cloth and wiped her face off. Hunting around for a piece of wood and some thread, she clutched them to her and started searching the room. Could she somehow trick him into taking her from behind? 

If she wanted to trick him into doing that, she was going to have to make sure he was actually  _ able  _ to be tricked. She remembered him being more  _ feral  _ at night, the wolf body aside. So if he were more unhinged and animalistic in his werewolf body, did that mean he was more prone to following his instincts? 

Putting the thread and the piece of wood down, Nora slid her hand between her thighs, gathered up some of her slick, and left the room. 


	7. Chapter 7

It’d been a long night of running around, burning off energy, killing everything in sight, and trying to keep his mind off _her._ For the most part, he’d been successful in stopping his mind from straying, just focusing on the task at paw—but when he’d gotten back into the estate, that was no longer the case as the thought of her hit him at full speed just like the smell of her did. 

She was _everywhere._ And it wasn’t just _her,_ but her _arousal;_ and it was _strong._

He stopped in the main hall, tipping his chin up and taking a deep breath, inhaling her scent as it surrounded him. _Fuck,_ she might as well have been standing beside him touching herself from how hard his dick got. 

Arthur made a beeline for his room, expectant to find her there ready and waiting for him as she’d said she’d be last night. 

When the door opened, Nora was on the bed, arms and legs crossed, wearing his shirt and nothing else. “There you are,” she said. “Was wondering when you would come back.”

Yellow eyes zeroed in on her, taking her in. She was wearing his clothes? “Why does the estate smell like…” he trailed off, slowly stepping into the room and approaching. The smell was even stronger now, making his cock pulse. 

“I thought it would be fun to see if I can drive you as insane as you’re driving me,” she replied, idly playing with the hem of his shirt. “Why?”

“How am _I_ driving _you_ insane?” he asked, growling through gritted teeth. Her legs were bare and as he grew closer, his eyes swept over them. 

Nora stretched, arching up, the fabric of the shirt thin enough to reveal the stiff peaks of her nipples through it. “I want you to fuck me, but you won’t. So I...did a little bit of work.”

“That’s not the same, princess,” he hissed. “You know it’s not.”

She shrugged, and lay back down. “Well, it’s not like it worked, anyway. So I wasted my time trying it. That was a lot of furniture I rubbed up against.”

 _Fuck._ The thought of her rubbing and grinding on everything just to leave her scent behind… his nose crinkled in frustration. She thought it hadn’t worked, but he certainly felt like he was going crazy. 

He was silent for a moment, thinking about what to do; part of him wanted to fuck her, to just give in and take her like his instincts demanded, but the other part of him knew he shouldn’t and that he had to remain vigilant. 

“Did you prep yourself like I said?” he finally asked, stepping closer again. 

Nora shook her head. “Nope,” she replied. “I decided you didn’t deserve it.”

 _“Didn't deserve it!?”_ Arthur snarled. 

Nora reached down and pulled the shirt off, tossing it aside. “No. I decided I wasn’t going to let you. After all, I’d only let someone do that to me if I _really_ didn’t want them to take my virginity, and since I _do_ want you to, why do you deserve to get one and not the other?”

“You’re testing my patience, princess,” Maxson growled. “Tell me why I shouldn’t just edge you until you’re begging me to stop.”

“You don’t deserve to do that either,” Nora said, folding her arms, pushing her breasts up. “So I’m not going to let you do that either.”

“You’re not going to let me?” he repeated. “Last time I checked, little girl, I could do what I wanted so long as I didn’t hurt you or penetrate you. And edging requires neither of those.” He was quickly atop her, straddling her hips as she was laid back on the bed.

Shrieking, Nora tried to roll over, grabbing at the bedclothes to try and pull herself out from underneath him. “I said you couldn't!”

He allowed her to roll over, then grabbed her hands to pin them against the small of her back. “But I _can,_ and I _will.”_

Struggling, Nora wriggled desperately beneath him. “I’m not a _toy!”_

“No? You so badly want to be fucked, but you’re not a toy?” Holding her wrists with one hand, he leaned off the bed and grabbed the discarded shirt, then used it to tie her hands together at the small of her back. “I disagree. I’ll use you how I see fit: as my toy.”

“Monster,” she spat, pulling desperately at her bindings. “I’m a _princess.”_

“Yes, you _are_ a princess,” Arthur agreed. “But you’re also my toy, and I’ll play with you whenever and however I want.” He flipped her onto her back, his body still atop hers. “Face it, girlie: you enjoy this. It’s why you left your smell everywhere, because you knew it’d rile me up.”

“Then get on with it,” Nora snapped at him. “Or are you incapable of fulfilling your promise to make me _beg_ you?”

“You really think I’m incapable when you were so close to begging in the library?” he taunted. Shifting back, he moved her legs apart, then pushed her thighs to her chest so her hips canted up a bit as he scooted down. “You know better than that.” Arthur locked eyes with her then as he allowed a string of spit to slowly fall from his lips and down to her pussy.

Nora hadn’t gotten herself off the whole night. So despite the way part of her recoiled at the saliva, her clit twitched at the contact, and she inhaled sharply. “Prove it,” she gasped. 

“I think we both know I don’t need to,” he murmured, leaning down, his tongue lolling out to drag along her folds—but stopped just before he touched her, instead staring up at her. 

Nora glared down at him. _“What?”_

A wide grin stretched across his face. “Just wanted to make sure you were paying attention.” Without waiting for a response, Arthur turned his head and sunk his teeth into her thigh. 

The _pain_ from it ricocheted through her body and pooled between her thighs. The runes throbbed, delivering that same sensation to him as Nora cried out. 

A low groan of pleasure was muffled against her skin, but he didn’t pull away at first, instead keeping his hold by sucking on the spot he’d pulled between his teeth. Another bite was made on her other thigh, a similar noise escaping him when the runes made him feel the same thing she was feeling, and he sucked a mark into her skin, leaving bruises on both thighs. 

“Are you,” her breathing was laboured, _“enjoying_ that?!”

His eyes flicked up to her just as he wet his bottom lip, but rather than answering, Maxson leaned in and ran the flat of his tongue up her folds, ending at her clit and flicking the tip against the sensitive bud. 

Yelping at the sensation, Nora fell back against the mattress, shivering. “Gods,” she whispered. After the hours she’d spent...the friction felt so _good._ She’d lied to him about grinding on the furniture. She hadn’t touched it at all, just wiped her slick on it. 

“How long have you thought about me doing this?” he asked before dragging his tongue along her again. “Since you got here?” And again. “Or is that the actual reason you came?”

"I didn't- I didn't come here to- _sleep_ with you," she protested.

“No? What did you come here for, then?” He pushed the tip of his tongue between her folds, flicking it against her clit. 

“T-to _kill_ you,” she reminded him. Her voice cracked. “Oh, _fuck.”_

“Mm, you sure you didn’t plan to fuck me first?” Maxson sucked her clit between his lips and roughly ground his tongue against it as he did. 

Nora let out a high keening noise, her feet pressing against his shoulders with how her knees were held up by her chest. The- _oh,_ he was _too_ good at this, and she could already feel the heat growing tight between her thighs. “No,” she gasped, “I didn’t- I would _never-”_

A quiet, taunting laugh was muffled against her, vibrating around her clit as he kept sucking on it and roughly grinding the flat of his tongue against the swollen bud. His eyes flicked up to her face, watching her expressions as he worked, taking in the sight of every change in her facial features while she gasped and moaned beneath him. 

One hand slid off her thigh and up to her breast, cupping and squeezing it before he lightly pinched her nipple. 

"I'm," she gasped out, her toes curling, "I, _fuck,_ oh, gods, ah, _oh,_ fuck, g-going- to-!"

He pulled away, denying her that baser need as he dragged his tongue along his bottom lip and locked eyes with her. 

Panting, Nora let out a frustrated groan, trembling a little as the pleasure she had been feeling died away. "Fuck," she grunted.

“So, you’re telling me the thought of getting fucked by the beast you came to kill before you killed it never once crossed your mind, princess?” he asked, leaning over to place a gentle, teasing kiss to her thigh. 

“W-well you weren’t exactly painted in a flattering light,” Nora panted. 

Maxson hummed, then once again leaned down to flick the tip of his tongue against her clit, though it was only once. “I’m still not, and yet… here you are.”

“I-I, _mmm,_ what do you want me to say?” she asked, her brow quirking. “You want me to stroke your ego and say I was daydreaming of- of being _ravished_ by you?”

Snorting, a wide grin stretched across his face. “You could,” he drawled, then roughly licked her clit with the flat of his tongue. “Or you could tell me the _truth_ about what you want, excluding breaking this fucking curse.”

Nora’s back arched. “The- _truth?”_ she panted. “I-I don’t- that _is-_ what I want. A-and I want you to- to- f- _fuck_ me, cursed or- or not.”

 _“Why?”_ Sucking her clit back into his mouth, he kept his gaze on her while grinding his tongue against the swollen bud, trying to work her toward another peak. 

“B-because,” her thighs trembled, “I-I f-find, _oh, gods,_ I find- you- attractive!”

He made a noise against her that signaled for her to keep going while his tongue swirled around her clit, and he lightly pinched her nipple at the same time. 

“A-aren’t you- don’t you _want_ to- I don’t- I’m _giving_ myself,” Nora whimpered, her toes curling. “P-plea- I don’t care if- if you- _oh- fuck-_ just- _use me!”_

As soon as she was close to the edge, Arthur pulled away, dragging his tongue along his bottom lip again. “Use you, hm?” he asked breathlessly. “I already told you I’m not gonna fuck you, princess.” He glanced up and down her body from where he was at between her legs. “But I’m sure I could find _other_ ways to use you.”

Panting, Nora glanced down at him. “Tell me,” she said, breathless. 

Humming, his eyes briefly dropped to her chest before he got to his feet, allowing her legs to fall to the bed while he moved over her stomach, and then _dropped_ to his knees over her so he was sitting on her abdomen. 

Nora jolted, unable to stop him with her hands behind her back like this. “What- what are you _doing?!”_

“Quiet,” he growled, grabbing one of the pillows and pulling her up by her shoulders to push it beneath her, providing a bit of an incline. When he was satisfied, Arthur shifted forward a little and settled his cock between her breasts, then slowly started thrusting so he was just grinding against her sternum. 

Her lips parted. “Are you- _serious?”_

“Am I serious about what?” he mumbled, watching his precum coat her skin. 

“Where do you _think_ of these ideas?” Nora muttered, her thighs drawing up and parting. Gods, she was still _throbbing_ and unfulfilled. 

“Call me _imaginative.”_ Leaning forward, he spit down onto his cock, then spread his saliva around his shaft before grasping her breasts and pushing them together. 

“And you wanted me to _leave,”_ she muttered. “See? If you made me leave, you couldn’t do _this_ to me.”

“I’m sure I’d manage.” His hips made slow thrusts. “Besides, I could just capture one of the people your parents sent and play with them.”

Her head tilted. “So you’d rather fuck someone who didn’t want you?”

Maxson’s eyes flicked up to her. “I don’t need saving, princess.”

She shrugged. “So what if I said that I’d let you fuck my ass if you could keep me from leaving?”

Pausing, he studied her face, searching for some sort of trick she was playing. “Go on.”

She licked her lips. “You want someone to play with and mess around with. I want you to _fuck_ me. You won’t do it, and I’m being far too _happy_ to be played with for you to really _enjoy_ it. So let’s say I prepare myself like you want me to, and then I try and escape. If I _do_ escape, you’re going to end up getting killed anyway, so...but if you catch me, well...you can do what you want. And so long as I’m here, nobody’s going to come after you. And you can enjoy having someone at your mercy who wants you to do several things that you refuse to. So...what do you say?”

It had to be a trick. She’d tricked him numerous times thus far, so the only logical explanation was that this was _another_ trick, just some magical nonsense he’d fall victim to. 

But it was… _enticing._

Grabbing her chin, Arthur leaned forward a little. “No more tricks, girlie. Understood?”

Nora nodded. “I’ll even reduce some of the runes’ power. You won’t be able to _damage_ me but...I’ll lessen the amount of pain that you’ll need to inflict before it hurts you too.”

A brief, quiet hum escaped him as he glanced down to his cock with only his eyes. “Good. Then you should prep yourself well, because I’m not helping in that regard.”

Nora nodded again, her eyes meeting his before going to the thickness laying across her chest. “I’ll do it while you sleep.”

He released her chin and went back to grasping her breasts, pushing them together again while his hips started slowly thrusting once more. “When do I hunt you? After I wake?”

“Dusk,” Nora replied. “Just before you turn. If you catch me, you’ll have a naked princess to fuck in your wolf form. I’ll even show you how to stop me from using my magic. I’ll _really_ make myself your toy.”

Before she even finished, he was laughing—loudly. _“Dusk?”_ he repeated. “Did I make you that interested in being knotted, princess?”

“You make fun of something that benefits you,” she huffed. “Maybe I just want to find out.”

“Or maybe,” his hips thrusted harder, “You’re just trying to trick me into losing control so I’ll fuck you how you want.”

“Well what if I _want_ to know what it’s like to get fucked by an out of control wolfman?” Nora shot back. “Being a princess is a lot of responsibility. I like not being in control all the time.”

 _“Mmmnn,_ I’m sure that’s part of it, too. You want to be mounted and knotted by me, but— _mmmnn_ —but not in your ass.” Licking his bottom lip, he glanced between her face and her tits, the head of his cock appearing each time he thrusted forward. _“Are_ you trying to trick me, little girl?”

“Trick you into keeping me as a bound and powerless slave at your mercy?” Nora asked. “Because there’s a large chance I’m going to lose.”

Heat was coiling deep in his gut, slowly but surely, and the sight of her tits moving with each thrust was helping that along. “Don’t play with me,” he growled. “This is your— _fuck_ —this is your last warning.”

“Or what?” Nora shot back. 

He hadn’t actually gotten that far yet considering he was a bit preoccupied. Panting, Arthur stared down at her, his thrusts picking up speed. “... Hush,” he growled. 

Nora stuck her tongue out at him. 

He pushed his index and middle fingers into her mouth when she slid her tongue back in—though they didn’t go far enough to gag her—while shifting his thigh closer to try to keep her breast near his cock. The other one was still giving enough friction, at least. 

Nora sucked on his fingers, bobbing her head a little. She gazed up at him as her tongue swirled around the digits.

 _“Fuck,”_ he groaned, pulling his fingers free and grasping her breast again, then pushing them both together around his cock. It was only a few more thrusts before he was close. “Open your mouth and tip your head down.”

Nora obeyed, her eyes fixed on his. 

Another few thrusts had him coming with a quiet moan, never pulling out from between her tits. When he pushed forward the first time, a string of cum landed on her tongue and chest; the second thrust had another string mostly on her chest with a little on her chin.

Nora’s nose wrinkled a little, and she swallowed what had landed in her mouth. It wouldn’t do to be _too_ obedient. He might get bored. Licking her lips, she squeezed her shoulders together as best she could. “Is that all?”

Panting, he looked down at her with an arched eyebrow. “What do you mean _‘is that all’?”_

Nora shrugged. “I don’t know. I just...imagined you would have... _more_ when you...you know. Find your end.”

He blinked, unsure if he should be insulted or not. He’d cum on her before and she’d never complained, but now it was a problem all of a sudden? And _why_ was he even insulted? “The rest of it is on your chest, princess. Feel free to wipe it up and put it in your mouth, if you’d like.”

She tugged at her hands. “No, thank you. It’s not like I’m not going to just wash it off in a few minutes. I just never realised how little it _was_ until I saw it. Do you have more as a wolf?”

His lip upturned and he moved off her. “Get out.”

She rolled over. “If you don’t untie me I can’t prep myself. And where’s everything you said I’d be able to use?”

Climbing off the bed, Arthur went to one of the dressers in his room and grabbed a small bag from a drawer, then returned to her and put it into her hands without untying her. “That’s everything you need,” he told her while pulling her to her feet. “You can figure out how to untie yourself. Now, get out.”

“Thank you, sir,” Nora said politely with a tiny curtsey, and moved over to the door, pushing the handle to open it. With that, she made her way back to _her_ room, not touching the mess on her skin. She managed to step her legs through her bindings and then tug them off with her teeth. It was just an old shirt, and she placed it down, closing her own door and locking it. Not that it would really keep Arthur out if he wanted in, but that was fine. She made her way over to the drawers, pulling out every last piece of clothing in there. Finding the stick and twine, she summoned her unseen servant. 

“Ok,” she took a deep breath, “let’s...get to it.”

* * *

The sun was starting to set by the time Nora was done with her plan, and she wondered if Arthur was done sleeping yet. She began moving around the house, hiding scraps of slick-soaked clothing all over the place, wiping it into every surface she could. She was left in just his shirt, and she tucked that under a chair at the bottom of the stairs, finding a quiet hiding spot to wait for Arthur to start moving around upstairs. 

It wasn’t often he slept the entire day, but he was drained, and waking up countless times meant he didn’t often get the sleep he needed to be fully rested. Still, he was up by dusk, the beast refusing to let him doze any longer, his body changing not long after he woke. 

But the moment he stepped out of his room, the smell of Nora struck his nose like a tidal wave, and he was reminded of the promise she’d made him last night: the promise of a hunt. He couldn’t stop himself from following the closest scent to him, recognizing the aroma of _slick._

Nora could hear him as he awoke, and he was heading the opposite end of the house to her. She slowly moved out from her kitchen hiding spot, and she’d left the back door ajar, slipping out of it to dip her hand into the bucket and cast _control water._ Dousing herself in it as quietly as she could, she slipped back inside, trying to quietly make her way to the front door. 

Her smell was _everywhere,_ taking him from room to room, the scent of her slick rubbed all over the furniture like she’d been grinding on it again. _Fuck,_ it nearly had him drooling in anticipation, already eager and wanting what she’d promised. But from how much he was tracking her, it was going to take some time. 

These were all distractions. There had to be an easier way. 

She made it, trying the handle. The door made a _squeaking_ noise, but she slipped through it, pushing it shut behind her. And then she was outside. Taking a deep breath, Nora began to run for the gate. 

Rather than traversing the entire estate, he went straight for the main hall, figuring there had to be a stronger, more recent scent there—

Something caught his attention: the front door opening and closing, it’s recognizable creak echoing in his ears as he closed in on the room. Either Nora was leaving or an army was silently invading, one of the two—he guessed the former. And his suspicions were proven correct when he entered the main hall, only to find it empty. 

Quickly, Arthur followed, trailing after her scent—or was that _his_ scent?—to stop her from escaping and to claim his prize. 

Nora had a few tricks up her sleeve as she heard the door opening behind her. She glanced over her shoulder. She could save this one for if she _really_ wanted to get away in time, and so many of her spells required things to cast them that she didn’t ha-

 _Wait._ Snatching up a twig as she ran, Nora whispered some words, and started running the direction of the pulsing purple light that appeared in her vision. 

She’d promised no tricks, but he still didn’t trust her, especially considering she’d had the entire day to herself to plan her escape. Granted, she could have escaped by now, but she might have been biding her time or wanted to toy with him first or even try her hand at taking him out one last time. 

But this was a hunt. He had to claim his prize or lose her and end up with an army at his gates. 

She wasn’t in his vision, but the scent he was tracking was strong, and Arthur was nearly running while following it to catch up with her. 

“Come on, princess!” he called, unsure if she could even hear him. “You know I’ll catch you!”

Nora ignored him, snatching up a feather she spotted as she kept running. She was very close now, and as she broke through some bushes, she saw it, lying there on the ground. 

Her satchel. 

She grabbed it, clinging to it, and glanced around. To her right was the gate, about 200 feet away. To her left, some woods. Nora took off for the woods. 

All hope was lost when he reached the gate. She’d escaped. How could he have lost? How could he have _failed?_

But… no, her scent didn’t run out the gate, it went… into the woods? 

Trickery. She wasn’t trying to escape. The thought only enraged him because he didn’t understand what she was doing. What were her motives? Was she trying break the curse? He’d _told_ her that he didn’t need nor want it broken! Growling, Maxson immediately chased after her, sprinting to catch up. She was so close, he could almost _taste_ her. 

Tugging fleece from her pouch, Nora cast _minor illusion,_ a piercing whistle filling the night air. Reaching the edge of the woods, she glanced back over her shoulder, and then rushed in, pulling out string and grabbing a bit of wood. She gave it instructions, swallowing down the _moan_ that tried to escape her as it soaked its fingers in her slick and began to dart through the woods, smearing it on the trees. Nora kept moving, trying to get deeper. 

Her scent changed again, shifting away from his and back to hers, and the smell was so _intoxicating_ that he didn’t even think nor care about why that might have been, instead immediately trailing after it, taking deep breaths like he’d get drunk on the smell alone. 

_“Princess,”_ he drawled, calling for her. She _had_ to be close. “Come play with me.”

Nora broke through the trees into a small clearing. Her foot hit a twig, and as it cracked, she tripped, landing on her knees with a winded gasp.

The noise gave her away and Arthur’s eyes searched through the trees for where it originated. But it hadn’t come from in front of him where he’d been following the trail; it was somewhere to his right—and it was _close._ He was quick to dart in that direction, and it was only moments until he came upon the clearing, finding his prey within. 

“There you are,” he purred, slowly approaching. 

Nora had already been scrambling to her feet, and she was moving to get up when he approached. Glancing over her shoulder, then back at the woods, she leapt forward. 

She was still trying to flee!? Even after he’d spent all this time hunting her down, now clearly having succeeded? Maxson snarled and lunged at her, taking her down from behind and pinning her to the ground with his weight. “Where do you think you’re going, little girl? I hunted you, just like you said. Now, I want what you promised.”

Wriggling in his grip, Nora’s ass rubbed against his erection. She had one more spell to use if this went sour and she didn’t give him any indication she could still use them as she struggled in his arms. “Don’t you _touch_ me! _”_ she hissed. “Fuck, I knew- _goddamn it._ Shit. I was wrong! I was wrong! I shouldn’t have removed the rune, shit!”

His senses were going haywire, and all her thrashing did was thicken the smell of her scent in the air, intoxicating him even more on it. _Fuck,_ he couldn’t stop himself from grinding against her. “Having second thoughts, are you?” Arthur taunted as he sat up, one hand going to the middle of her back to push her shoulders more into the dirt while his other hand went to her hip to pull her lower half up. “Shame.”

“Don’t,” Nora breathed. “Don’t, _don’t,_ you don’t have to- I don’t want you-”

“Mm, that’s a pretty sound, princess, but begging won’t do anything.” He shifted behind her, pressing the tip of his cock against her folds. “You really shouldn’t have removed the runes.”


	8. Chapter 8

Nora kept wriggling in his grip,  _ accidentally  _ working the tip a little deeper into her. She hadn’t removed them, of course; but Arthur didn’t need to know that. He just thought he was finally fucking her against her will, and if that was what it took, Nora was going to enjoy  _ finally  _ having him pin her down and knot her like he’d promised. 

“I-I didn’t- you-  _ tricked me,”  _ she panted. “The- edging- it made- it left me all-  _ fuzzy.” _

_ “I _ tricked  _ you!?” _ he growled, his hips slowly pushing forward and pressing his cock into her; it was different from what she’d seen and felt when he was naked before. “Don’t forget that  _ you _ were the one who— _mmmnn_ —who put the runes on us, who made me hunt you around this— _fuck_ —around this damned forest, who’s been using magic non-stop to  _ fight me. _ But now you— _mmmnn_ —now you suddenly change your mind because of a little edging? Not how it works, girlie. Don’t bullshit me.”

The sharp cry that escaped her as Arthur continued to fill her was enough to temporarily halt the words she wanted to say. “I-it made me want to be  _ used,” _ she gasped. 

“Oh, yeah?” Leaning over, he arched along her back, pressing flush against it as his tone dropped while, at the same time, his hips finally met with her ass. “That’s not because of me, little girl. That’s all you. That’s  _ your  _ kink.”

Nora’s breath left her in a heavy sigh.  _ Ok.  _ So far so good....

“I’m surprised you haven’t spilled already,” she taunted. “Since this is your first.”

“My  _ ‘first’?” _ he questioned, though immediately regretted it, knowing she’d piss him off. That was one of her goals all along, wasn’t it? To taunt him and piss him off over and over again? Because it fucking  _ worked.  _ Maxson slowly pulled his hips back, then roughly pushed forward. His cock  _ rubbed _ against her walls in a way that left Nora shaking and panting. 

“Is that it?” she breathed. “You promised so  _ much _ and now all you’re doing is just-”

Snarling, one hand slid up to the back of her neck, cupping it and holding her down while the one on her hip grasped to keep her still just as he started roughly thrusting, fucking her hard before she was able to finish talking. Nora’s body tensed up. There was a  _ stretch  _ and an  _ ache _ where he was thrusting in and out of her, but no pain, so he hadn’t damaged her. “Bastard!” she cried, despite the- the  _ sound  _ they were making between her thighs. It was so  _ wet-  _ gods, her cheeks burned. “F-fucking-  _ gods!” _

“Not talking so much shit now, are you, princess?” he panted, releasing her hip as he reached beneath her, his fingers grazing her clit in light circles.  _ “Mmmnn, _ you want to cum? Tell me.”

Nora hadn’t gotten herself off at all, even in the privacy of her own room, and as his fingers touched at her nub, a shiver rushed through her. “Yes,” she gasped out, genuine, no acting required. “Yes,  _ please.” _

“Keep begging,” he ordered. “Loudly.”

“F-for what?” she panted. “T-to- oh!- or to- for you- to- stop?”

“I’m not stopping until I’ve had my fill, girlie. But if you want to cum, you will  _ beg _ for it.” Arthur snapped his hips against her ass; heat was just barely coiling in his gut, but he was still quite a ways off before he was finished. 

Nora wasn’t sure what would cause the curse to be lifted - perhaps her orgasm, perhaps his - but if it was  _ both,  _ she needed to make sure she covered her bases. “Please,” she whimpered, “please, I  _ need-  _ I  _ need _ it, I need  _ you,  _ please let me,  _ please,  _ Arthur! I-I’ll- I’ll do anything, please!”

“That’s it,” he praised, pressing his fingers a bit harder against her clit while he rubbed faster. “Maybe I’ll even make you cum when I— _fuck_ —when I knot you, increase the chance to get you pregnant. What do you think, princess? How does it sound to— _mmmnn_ —to carry the child of someone like me? Some _ thing _ like me?”

Shaking, Nora could feel the heat rapidly coiling in her core. “W-wait,” she panted, “wait, no, p-pregnant? We- we didn’t- you  _ wouldn’t-  _ you-!”

“Oh, but I  _ would,”  _ he purred, snapping his hips against her before returning to that same pace. “I could keep you locked up, just bent over and— _mmmnn_ —bent over and ready for me to fuck you whenever I want.  _ Use you.  _ Get you— _fuck_ —get you pregnant over and over.”

There was a picture of it in her mind, of her locked in that cell, tied up so that she was spread wide open, and oh  _ gods,  _ it almost sent her over the edge. “Nnnn,  _ fuck,” _ she panted. “You-you  _ can’t-!” _

“I  _ can,  _ and I  _ will. _ You wanted to be my toy, so I’ll make you into one.” The heat in his gut was even tighter, and with her nearly pulsing around him, he was finding himself getting close to the edge. 

The sensation that hit her with Arthur still buried inside her was much more intense than she had anticipated, and Nora came  _ hard,  _ her voice filling the clearing and ringing through the woods. Squeezing down on his cock was almost impossible given just how  _ thick _ he was, but she clamped down on it, her fingers digging into the dirt to ground herself somehow as the pleasure rushed over her. “Arthur! Gods!”

He couldn’t stop the low groan that rumbled from his chest as she came, clamping around his cock enough that he was throbbing inside her, getting so close to his climax. Pulling his fingers away from her clit, Maxson shifted to his feet behind her without pulling his cock out, giving himself a different position that allowed him to thrust  _ down _ into her while both clawed hands pressed into her upper back, firmly pushing her more into the dirt as he kept going.

But he was  _ so close. _ And she was still  _ pulsing _ around him.

_ “Fuck,”  _ he panted, claws pricking her shoulder blades a little more. His growing knot was bumping against her now as he was reaching his end, and he knew she’d fight it when he was ready—but if he was going to breed her, he was going to breed her  _ right. _

The sensation of  _ too much  _ was one she hadn't been prepared for. The friction of his cock against her walls was suddenly almost...a little uncomfortable. But Nora ignored it as best she could, wriggling as though trying to get out from under him. 

"You can't," she panted, "Arthur,  _ wait,  _ you'll- you'll- fuck!"

“Hold still,” he ordered, sliding his claws along her skin as his hands went to her shoulders to firmly grip her there, pulling her back into him. It only took a few more thrusts before he changed his pace and rhythm, instead abruptly rutting against her as he soon forced his knot in. It started to swell even more, locking them together while he tipped over the edge with a low groan. 

The-  _ feeling  _ of him coming in her was alien, abnormal, but Nora sort of liked it. The way his cock twitched in her, the way he started to  _ swell- _

She hissed, sucking air in between her teeth to deal with the  _ stretch  _ and exhaled long and slow, hoping that the runes wouldn’t flare up and give away her lie. Not that it really mattered now. Arthur had fucked her with her full consent and a little play-acting. If she was lucky it would be all they’d need to break the curse.

“Monster,” she panted.

“Mhm.” Leaning over her, Maxson rocked his hips back and forth just enough for his knot to slightly move inside her as he did, though he never pulled out. His front curved against her back, and he dragged the flat of his tongue along her shoulder while one hand balanced most of his weight on the ground, the other slipping between her legs again, fingers grazing her clit. “I am. But let’s make sure it takes, hm?”

“No, nononono _ no,” _ she keened, unable to struggle away thanks to the knot keeping her tied against him. “Arthur- stop- you  _ can’t-” _

His teeth gently clamped down onto the side of her neck while he started rubbing her clit a little faster. Moaning, Nora grabbed at his hand, the other one digging into the ground, making a show of trying to pull it away as the heat started to coil again beneath his touch. How long was it going to take if it had truly worked? She didn’t like to think.

Releasing her from his bite, he kept his mouth close to her ear as he spoke. “I know you enjoyed it, princess. Getting fucked and knotted. And I know you like the idea of being held hostage, getting used by me whenever I want, being made to bear my children.” He pressed a little harder on her clit. 

“Bastard!” she yelped. “N-no,  _ never,  _ you  _ can’t-  _ I won’t  _ let  _ you- oh,  _ fuck,  _ gods!” She was teetering on the edge as she spoke. 

A deep laugh vibrated from his chest and into her back. “You can’t stop me, little girl,” he purred. “But you  _ will _ cum for me.  _ Now.” _

Her thighs tried to clamp around his hand as the waves of pleasure washed over her. Crying out, Nora’s nails dug into the man’s arm, sweat dripping down her neck. Fuck. She had miscalculated, hadn’t she? She was wrong. She had failed. The curse wasn’t going to break after all, and she had just put herself through days of humiliation for nothing.

“Very good,” he praised, licking the back of her shoulder again. “And to think, you’d changed your mind after disabling the runes. I bet you’re regretting it, aren’t you, prin—“

There was a brief, sharp fuzziness in his head, almost like a jolt, that had him pausing. He blinked, unsure what it was, though assumed it was nothing until it happened again, increasing in intensity. “What is—” He paused and the hand that had been between her legs went to his head as his vision became blurry. “What is happening?” he growled, his eyes tightly closing. When it happened a  _ third _ time, he could only relate it to the woman beneath him—it had to be her fault. Somehow. “What did you  _ do _ to me!?” he snarled, lips curling to bare his teeth.

But before Arthur could say or do anything else, he collapsed. 

_ FUCK! _

Nora managed to get up just enough to breathe in, and then she cast  _ dimension door,  _ disappearing out from beneath him to stand a few feet away. His cum immediately streamed out of her, but at least she could breathe again, and she summoned her unseen servant again, ordering him to pick Arthur’s body up and take him to the estate. 

Hopefully...hopefully it worked. 


	9. Chapter 9

It was too bright, like the sun was shining directly in his face rather than dimmed by the curtained windows; his eyes cracked open just enough to look around without his body having to move.

He was… in his room? Where had he even been last? What had even happened? And why was his head  _ pulsing? _

With a quiet groan, Arthur closed his eyes again, turning his face more into the pillow to block out the sunlight.

Nora heard the groan from her room. She'd located her clothes hours ago, and it was good to be able to wear them again. She hoped she wasn't about to lose them to a man's fury, however, and as she knocked on Arthur's bedroom door, her stomach was tying itself into knots.

"Arthur?" she called. "Can I come in?"

That voice… something in his gut churned, though he wasn’t entirely sure why. All he could do was mumble his permission while pushing himself to his elbows—having somehow rolled onto his stomach during his slumber—then shift onto his side, his thumb and forefinger rubbing at his eyelids. “What is it?”

Pushing open the door, Nora stepped inside. “I was hoping to see how you were feeling,” she told him. She wasn’t sure what to expect, not really. Had it worked? Was he no longer cursed? Or was he going to be angry?

With the sight of her, everything that had happened over the past few days came flooding back to him—her arrival, his request for her to break the curse, what he’d done to her, what’d happened last night… His stomach churned again, but this time, guilt washed over him as it did, and he stared at her with furrowed brows and a tense jaw. 

Why the hell was she still here? She had every opportunity to leave last night after he’d passed out, so why hadn’t she? It made no sense. 

“Nora,” he breathed, using her actual name without even realizing it, let alone the fact he was thinking so clearly. He wanted to ask if she was hurt, if he’d damaged her after… well, after what he’d done to her last night.

_ Fuck,  _ he was a monster, and that only proved it. 

Her head tilted. “So….you don’t seem to be an arse right now…? I think that means it worked. Does your head hurt? I could get you some water or something to eat if you’re hungry. I’ve never been cursed so I don’t know what it’s like to have one broken.”

“Broken?” he echoed, watching her cautiously. “What do you—wait, you mean  _ the curse?” _ How could that have been the case? He remembered she’d been trying to get them to have sex for a couple days, but changed her mind last night, which meant he’d—which meant it shouldn’t have worked… right?

“Yes, the curse,” Nora said. “I think it worked? I didn’t know if it would do anything since sometimes being tricky with the wordplay can backfire. There weren’t exactly any guidelines about  _ how  _ it had to be broken using sex so I was really worried it wouldn’t. Do you feel any different? Better? Do you feel like hurting me?”

Sitting up, Arthur rubbed at his eyes again. “No, just… my head hurts, is all.” It was a  _ relief _ to have that control back again despite how unfamiliar it felt—something he hadn’t experienced in years since the curse had been enacted. “I don’t understand, though. How did you break it?”

Nora’s brow furrowed. “I’m not sure I understand the question. We had sex. It broke the curse. That’s pretty much it.”

“But it wasn’t…” his voice broke off, eyes turning away from her as remorse flooded him. “I remember you saying you didn’t want it.”

She blinked. “Oh. Yes. I lied. Sorry. I had to make you think you were taking me because you didn’t seem to want it when I was offering.”

That just made him feel  _ worse.  _ “Fuck,” he whispered, ducking his face into his hands. “God, I’m so sorry, Nora. I didn’t—I  _ shouldn’t have—“ _

Striding over, Nora sat down by him. "I'm not angry with you, Arthur. I had plans for what would happen if it went south. I wasn't in danger. But I had to break the curse and since it was trying to make you hurt me, I had to entice it. That wasn't  _ you.  _ You were being twisted into someone else and we both know it. That's why you asked me to break the damn thing. Whatever else you're upset about, don't think for one minute that I regret doing what I did. You're back in control and that's what I wanted to happen."

Even as she sat next to him, he scooted away, shaking his head. “No. No, it’s not right. After—after everything I’ve—I’ve—I’ve done… to you, to  _ others… _ oh, god, I’ve killed so many people.” His breath hitched in his throat at the memory of eating someone alive, tearing their insides out with his teeth—his  _ wolf  _ teeth. Had that been fixed, too? 

“Arthur.” She reached for his hand. “You were cursed. If the roles were reversed and it was  _ my  _ family who got cursed and I was the one who had been twisted into a murderer, would you hate me?”

“I didn’t just—I didn’t just  _ kill _ people, Nora,” he protested, shaking his head again while moving away from her. “I hurt them. I  _ tortured _ them. I…  _ you…” _ He couldn’t bring himself to say what he’d done to her; even if last night wasn’t technically non-consensual, his cursed self still  _ thought _ it was. And before that, he’d touched her, knowing he’d do even more if it weren’t for the runes. 

"It wasn't you, though," she said. "You were under a spell. The fact that you feel terrible for it now just proves that you would never have done that if you had been able to stop yourself. I'm not angry with you. Your own  _ parents  _ aren't angry with you. They love you and they want to see you again. The real you."

Getting off the bed, Maxson found himself pacing the room, his fingers running through his hair. “But they don’t have to  _ live _ with knowing that they—“ he paused, his face scrunching up a bit in disgust, “That they did all those things. That they hurt and killed people just for the fun of it. But  _ I do.” _

Nora nodded. “I’m not saying it’ll be easy, Arthur,” she told him. “I guess I should have expected you to remember everything, shouldn’t I? But it wasn’t  _ you.  _ And you can’t  _ blame  _ yourself for it. You shouldn’t. You’re...you’re going to need someone who can help you, I think. Someone you can talk to about this. You can’t be the only one who’s had a curse on them broken who feels awful about what they did under its thrall. I can help you find someone. Will you let me?”

It made no sense that she wanted to help him after what he did to her, even if it wasn’t actually  _ him.  _ Why wasn’t she enraged? Why wasn’t she  _ traumatized? _ Why didn’t she want to just  _ kill him? _ Fuck, he would have killed himself if he’d been in her shoes; then again, maybe he should just do it now. 

“No, there’s no point,” he replied, pacing the room even more. “Just… leave me here. You’re not stuck anymore. Leave me alone and I’ll take care of it.”

“Excuse me,” she folded her arms, “I didn’t come all this way and have your cursed self enjoy himself at my expense just to give up on you after the curse was broken. Don’t think for one moment I’m going to just  _ leave.  _ Lots of people have spent time and money hoping to get you back to your uncursed self and I’m certainly not letting you off the hook just because you’re angry at yourself. If I have to call Marienden here and get us both out, I will. It’s either that or I drag you out myself.”

Sitting on the edge of the bed with his back to her, Maxson leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, his head in his hands. “Just let me kill myself in peace, Nora. Please.”

She grabbed his shoulder, yanking him back as hard as she could. “I’m not going to do that. I broke your curse.” She lifted her shirt, showing the runes that were still burned onto her stomach. “If you even try it I’ll change these so that your death causes mine. Got it?”

He was pulled flat on his back, though didn’t bother moving this time, instead just choosing to stare up at her in exhaustion. “That’s not fair,” he whispered, studying the runes. “You should hate me after—after everything. Why don’t you hate me?”

Nora swung into his lap, staring down at him. “Would it shock you to learn that I was enjoying what we were doing? The first night was mostly irritating, I’m not going to lie. But...everything else was fun. I’m sorry if that sounds awful. It’s just it’s the truth.”

“But it’s not just what I did to you, it’s also what I’ve done to other people,” he sighed. His palms found her thighs out of instinct, though he immediately pulled his hands away, unsure where to even put them before placing them on the bed again. “I’m a monster, Nora. I’ve literally tortured people. I’ve eaten some alive and  _ enjoyed _ it. How can I live with that?”

Nora leaned down, arms resting on his chest. “Stop blaming yourself for the curse,” she said. “You were twisted up by a dark witch’s magic to be something you’re not. Which you’re proving to me, right now, by being so damn horrified at the memories you have. Anyone who came here to kill you knew what the dangers were. The ones who didn’t escape the day you turned probably didn’t think you were capable of hurting them, because you are  _ not a monster, _ Arthur. Someone forcing you to act like one against your will isn’t the same as you making a conscious choice to do it. The only one to blame for what happened to you is dead and your father killed her four years ago. This is the legacy she left, and frankly, fuck her. She was a horrible person and she made you do some awful things. So stop thinking you’re responsible for her cruelty.”

Arthur grew quiet, staring up at the ceiling while he let her words sink in. She wasn’t wrong, really, considering he had no control over himself during the last four years, but that didn’t necessarily make him feel any better; he still had to live with the memories of everything he did.

“Would the families of the people I tortured and maimed agree with you?” he quietly asked. “Would  _ your own _ family agree with you?”

Nora shrugged. “I’m going to be queen one day, it doesn’t really matter what they think,” she said. “Either they accept what I say or I threaten to abdicate. I’m the one who broke the curse. I own your life, frankly. And I’m not prepared to let anyone ruin all my hard work. And anyone who tries is going to have me to deal with.” She brushed her fingers through his hair. “I’m not saying it’s going to be easy. I meant it when I said I’d like to find other people who were cursed to see if you can share your experiences. But at the very least... don’t throw away what I gave you. I broke the curse so you could live again and I want to make sure that happens. It doesn’t matter how long it takes to work through those things you remember. I’ll be there to help if that’s what you want.”

It was strange to have someone speak this way about him. Of course, his parents cared—they’d sent people to the estate to find ways to break the curse and even kill him as a last resort—but Nora made it out like she was ready to go above and beyond for him, and he wasn’t entirely sure why. The princess barely even knew anything about him other than that he was a lord who’d been cursed four years ago, and yet she seemed determined to help him not only survive, but  _ thrive.  _

It made no sense. 

“I don’t… understand why you’re doing this. Not entirely,” he admitted, his chin tipping up as she ran her fingers through his hair; he nearly melted into the bed, his body visibly relaxing.  _ “But,” _ pausing, he sighed, “I will try, if you think… you can help.”

Nora dug her nails in a little as he relaxed onto the bed. “I’m doing this because I was set a challenge, I completed the challenge, and now my supposed reward wants to undo all my hard work. It’s like giving a blacksmith a difficult sword to forge and when the sword is completed it tries to jump back into the flames to melt itself down. I’d imagine any smith would be frustrated. And secondly, I could never forgive myself if I didn’t take care of that sword for the rest of my life if it gets damaged during the process. You’re hurt and you’re angry. You want to take it out on yourself. I’d rather you didn’t.”

Sucking a hissing inhale through his teeth, he locked eyes with her. “And I’m your reward? Your  _ sword?” _ There was a pause. “I hope you don’t plan on fucking a sword, at least,” he mumbled.

She made a face. “You’re right. Reward is...probably not a good word. But the point still stands. You asked me to help you and I did.” Her eyes met his. “....well if the sword is alive enough to want to throw itself into the flames...I’d...I wouldn’t  _ push  _ it for something like that. Especially since it seems so remorseful. That wouldn’t be right, no matter what I want.”

Arthur stared at her for a long moment, studying her face again, thinking. “... What if it doesn’t work?” he asked. “What if I don’t get better?”

“I’m not going to leave you even if that happens,” Nora said. “It would be irresponsible of me to undo your curse and then act as though you’ll be perfectly all right on your own. So...whether or not you  _ get better,  _ I’d like to stay around.”

“Alright,” he eventually conceded with a nod. “Alright. I’ll… do whatever it is you’re wanting. Not die, I suppose. So long as you stay.”

Curling some of his hair around her finger, Nora gave him a smile. “Well...what I’m wanting right now is to take you back to your parents. But if you’re not ready for that…”

He shook his head a bit too quickly. “No, not—not yet. I need some time to come to terms with everything first.”

“Did you want to leave the estate at least?” she asked. “We can...I mean, just walk around the kingdom for a while, together. Get you out of this place.”

“Won’t people recognize me?”

“Why would they? It’s not like there are wanted posters with your name and face on. You can always wear a hood,” she suggested. 

That was true. Plus, it’d been four years since he’d last left the estate and since anyone  _ else _ had last left the estate, and he looked different compared to four years ago—he was taller, bulkier, had different hair, a beard. It was probably safe to say no one would recognize him even without a hood. 

“Alright, I suppose that would be fine,” he agreed. 

Her fingers ran down his face tracing the scar, scratching his beard and under his chin. “I’m ready to leave whenever you are,” she said. “But I’ll stay here as long as you want to.”

“We can go now,” he said quietly, turning his face into her touches. “I’ll be okay with you there.”

“Oh, but you’re comfy,” she muttered, climbing off his lap anyway. Brushing herself off, she moved over to the door, looking back and waiting for him. 

He didn’t get up at first, instead watching her walk away—her ass, specifically—before finally standing and trailing after her. “I’ll survive,” he mumbled. 

“Well I hope I can sit in your lap more often,” she said, briefly darting into her room to grab her components pouch. “If you want me to.”

A glare was shot at the pouch almost subconsciously. “You can sit in my lap as often as you want, princess.”

Nora reached out her hand for his. “Good. You can decide if I do it with my clothes on or not.”

Hesitating, he glanced between her face and her hand a couple times before finally lacing their fingers together. “You’re tempting me to stay indoors.”

“With me or without me?” she teased, squeezing his hand as she started to walk down the hall. “Because I hope I’m not making you want to hide. I can stop talking about it if you want.”

“Mm, depends if your clothes are on or off.”

She moved a little closer to him. “Will you do what you were doing to me earlier?”

It was abrupt when he turned them both to where he had her pinned against the wall, facing one another, their bodies close while his forearms caged her in. “What did I tell you about tempting me?” he whispered, staring down at her with eyes that were no longer yellow, but sky blue.

_ Thank god he’s up for sex still,  _ Nora thought as her lips parted.  _ I was worried he would never be able to do that again because of the memories. At least...he seems to be ok with it? _

“Do you want to table leaving the estate for a bit?” she breathed. “If you have something better in mind for us to do?”

Leaning down a bit, their lips were close, and he glanced between her mouth and eyes before quietly humming. “Mm… no.” With that, Arthur pushed away and started walking toward the main hall again. “I want to walk. I will tease you later, if you want it that bad.”

Nodding, Nora followed after, touching his arm gently to ask for his hand again. “Do you remember the first night? When you, um,  _ smelled  _ me? Remember I said afterwards...I was thinking about you. I meant it. This isn’t just,” she bit her lip, “I do  _ really  _ find you attractive, Arthur. I don’t want you feeling obliged to do this just because I broke the curse. I want to make sure you want this- and me- too.”

“Of course I want you,” he replied, allowing his hand to be taken. “Your intentions don’t necessarily matter to me, I suppose, but it’s good to know there actually is attraction.” He glanced over at her as they neared the main hall. “I don’t expect anything from you, though it’s not as if I could even make demands, anyway.”

Nora felt herself biting her lip again, for a very different reason. “I think...I’d enjoy it if you did, though. So...don’t worry about that.”

He couldn’t hold back the grin that stretched across his face. “Noted. But you know what I mean.”

“Mmm.” Her other hand grasped at his arm as they reached the main hall, heading for the large front doors. “If we don’t have money for rooms and such, I can always make us a safe place to sleep with my magic.”

“Well, I would say we could just use the estate horses to come back here quickly, but…” he glanced away, “I ate them.”

She patted his arm. “I did leave  _ my  _ horse outside. I didn’t tie her up but she doesn’t go far. All she would do is find something to eat and drink. Do you want to bring her along?”

“We can,” he replied. “But I’m not sure she will like me. Most animals don’t since… well.”

Nora nodded. “If she’s upset, I can just take my money from her saddlebags and send her home. I think I’ve got enough copper wire to send a few more messages. I...might have plundered everything I could find whilst you were sleeping and stuffed it in the pouch.”

“The pouch,” he echoed with disdain. “I hate that thing.”

“Oh come on,” she sighed, as they reached the front door. Pushing it open, it creaked, and fresh air wafted into the room. “If not for the pouch and all the things in it, I wouldn’t be alive to have broken your curse. Don’t be so grumpy about it.”

“Still hate it,” he grumbled. “You try getting zapped and frozen and strung up and all that within a matter of 30 minutes.”

She leaned up and kissed his cheek. “You enjoyed the challenge.”

“... Perhaps a little.”

Stepping outside, Nora took a deep breath of the air. “Do you want to make it a regular thing?” she asked. “My spells vs your brawn? I won’t use the lethal ones since you aren’t a wolf anymore.”

He followed her outside and shut the door behind him, his eyes squinting in the sunlight. But it was then everything hit him all at once in a sudden wave—the strong smell of dirt and foliage and animals and _ her _ —and he couldn’t help but close his eyes as he took a deep breath through his nose, savoring it all. 

“Actually,” he started, his gaze turning to her after he glanced around, “That might not be the case.” Another deep inhale was made.  _ Yes, _ it was all there, just like before. “I thought I still felt it earlier, but I wasn’t sure. The wolf, I mean. Or, beast. But out here I can still…  _ smell _ everything.”

Nora remembered the sensation of Arthur’s wolf form knotting her and a pulse of heat rushed through her. “Semantics,” she muttered. “I guess I broke the part that kept you from having sex instead of trying to hump anyone you saw without their consent. I’m...not at all upset that you’re still…” her eyes glanced him up and down, “....furry at night. I...enjoyed last night quite a lot. Especially...well. All of it.”

Pursing his lips, he gave her a suspicious look; the smell of her arousal was  _ strong. _ “I’m guessing this means you’ll only be fucking me at night?”

“Not at all,” Nora said. “I’m just saying. If you were worried I wouldn’t  _ want  _ to once the sun went down...just so you know I’m happy to sleep with you whenever, whichever form you’re in. That’s all.”

“Mhmmm.” Another look was shot her way, this one more teasing, before he started walking down the path that led to the front gate. “I’m sure that’s it. No preference to being knotted at all, of course.”

She rolled her eyes. “Well, if you  _ want  _ me to refuse to fuck you during the day...the way you’re going, you might end up not having me at all.”

“Doubtful,” Arthur retorted. “I gave you an experience you won’t get anywhere else. And you already know I’m good in bed despite the fact I haven’t even fucked you in my human form yet.”

A little whimper escaped her. Her nails dug into his arm, and she walked a little faster, almost dragging him. “Well, it’s good to know that you didn’t...lose the teasing aspect,” she muttered, her cheeks burning. 

“Why? Do you like that?” he asked, his tongue wetting his bottom lip. Even as she started walking faster, he kept moving at the same pace—good luck dragging his bulk along. “Do you like when I tease you? Tell you what I can do to you but may or may not, depending on how I feel?” He slowed his walk. 

Nora glanced up at him. “Yes,” she told him. “I like it a lot, actually.”

“Would you like it if we went back inside right now and I fucked you until you were numb?”

“Who says we have to be inside?” she muttered.

“So,” he stopped walking and turned to face her, one arm wrapping around her waist to pull her flush against his chest. “You want to halt our walk just to have sex?”

Grasping both arms, Nora bit her lip. “Well...only if you want to,” she mumbled.

He glanced down to her mouth. “I think you just really don’t want to walk with me.”

She blinked. “If I didn’t want to walk I would fly.”

“Well, we can't have that,” he replied before leaning down and hooking his arm beneath the back of her knees, the other wrapping around her upper back as he picked her up bridal-style. “But since you’re getting so distracted by the idea of sex, I suppose I’ll just  _ carry _ you to town.”

Squeaking in surprise, Nora wrapped her arms around the man. “Oh, that’s- you don’t have to- ok.”

“We’re walking,” Arthur said firmly. “Or, rather,  _ I’m  _ walking. You’re tagging along. Just enjoy it and… you know, tell me where to go. It’s been a while.”

She nodded. “Keep going down the path, and then follow it through the woods. There’s only the one from your home into the nearest town.”

He flashed her a grin. “Yes, Your Highness.”


End file.
